Buried in the Past
by Emerald1
Summary: Director Vance's first case comes back to haunt the MCRT, and one agent in particular. Papa Gibbs, Tony and Tim friendship.
1. Chapter 1

**a/n - Normally I only post one story at a time, but I am working on two challenges that are due only a week apart. I'll be posting one chapter of a story every day, I might even post for both stories in one day. This story is being submitted to the Trust Challenge (What happened to make Vance trust McGee right from the beginning?) and also the Mag 7 Challenge (four members of the team +a Director + Fornell +OC agent). Enjoy!**

Buried in the Past

Set early in Season Six

Leon Vance winced as the intercom on his desk crackled to life. Ever since he'd accidentally knocked it onto the floor last week, it had been making some odd noises. _//Director Vance, there's an Agent Bidwell on line two for you.//_

"Thank you, hold all my other calls." Bidwell was a name he hadn't heard in years, but still made him instantly sick to his stomach. "Harlan, it's been a long time, what can I do for you?"

_~Straight to the point as always, Leon. Just wanted to give you a heads up. Mink is nosing around, trying to get his hands on the boy.~_

"Why in the hell would he be trying to do that?" Vance sat up straight, already planning on how to cut Mink's access.

_~The Kehoe case has become active again. He's the only living witness, Leon.~_

Even more than Mink, Kehoe was one name Vance prayed he'd never hear again. "Kehoe is in prison, remember? One hundred and fifty year sentence is a long time. There's no way in hell he's getting out."

_~Mink is convinced that one of his groupies is apparently following in his footsteps. I know how you feel about it, Leon, so I'm just giving you a heads-up off the record.~_

"I appreciate the heads-up. I also expect you to keep Mink under control." After the call ended, Vance spent almost ten minutes willing his hands to stop shaking.

---NCIS---

Tony and Ziva arrived in the squad room, arguing over her refusal to stop for lunch on their way back from an interview. McGee was downstairs in the lab working to reconstruct a hard drive found at their crime scene, while Gibbs was already back at his desk.

"Come on, Ziva, how long would it have taken to stop at a burger joint? We could have gotten lunch for the Boss, too. You're hungry aren't you, Boss?"

Gibbs didn't even look up from the files he was reviewing. "Nope, can't say that I am, DiNozzo. Start cross-referencing those cell phone records McGee left on his desk."

DiNozzo opened the bottom desk drawer of McGee's desk and grabbed several energy bars out from under the spare shirt kept in there. He ripped the wrapper off of one of them and shoved half the bar in his mouth as he gathered the file folders McGee had left there.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing, DiNozzo?" Director Vance stood on the stairs, glaring at him.

Tony had too big of a mouthful to immediately swallow, so his voice was muffled. "Eating, sir."

"Stealing food from McGee's desk, you mean." Vance continued down the steps to stand in front of DiNozzo.

"He doesn't mind, honest." Tony had no idea why Vance was so mad at him. He risked a glance over at Gibbs who looked as baffled as he felt.

"Well, I mind and I'm pretty sure his doctor didn't prescribe those protein bars to keep you fed." Vance looked like he was going to say something else, but instead stormed back upstairs and into MTAC.

DiNozzo looked back and forth between Vance's retreating form, the food in his hand, and Gibbs. "Doctor, what doctor?" He turned to face Gibbs. "I didn't know, Boss, honest."

Gibbs had set down the files and was rubbing his chin. "That makes two of us." He looked over at Ziva who shook her head.

"I have no knowledge of any medical issues McGee may be having, either."

While the three of them were trying to decipher what was going on with McGee, the object of their concern came out of the back elevator, a stack of printouts in his hands. "Boss, I've managed to reconstruct enough to get a listing of all his wire transfers for the last month." When he didn't get a response, he looked up to find Gibbs, Ziva and DiNozzo staring at him. "What?"

Gibbs stood and jerked his head towards the main elevator. "Conference room, now!"

As soon as the metal door closed behind them, Tony was on the phone to Abby. "Did you know that McGee was sick?"

_~He looked fine a few minutes ago, Tony.~_

"No, something long term, maybe something that started while the team was split up. Whatever it is, Vance is really upset about it. Are you sure he hasn't confided in you? I thought he told you everything."

_~Apparently not, what are we going to do? We can't lose him now that we've got you and Ziva back.~_

"We're not going to lose him, Abs, I promise."

Ziva didn't say anything until he had hung up the phone. "You should not have promised her, Tony. We do not know what is wrong."

---NCIS---

In the elevator Gibbs shut it down and turned to his agent. "What the hell is wrong, McGee?"

McGee was baffled. "I don't know, I've been down in the lab with Abby since we got back from the crime scene."

"No, McGee, what's wrong with you? Why didn't you tell me you were sick? If it affects your ability out in the field, I need to know about it." Gibbs studied his face. He was thinner than before they had been split up, but he didn't look ill.

"I honestly don't know what you're talking about, Boss." Tim tried to think back over the last few months. Other than Harvey running into his back with a cart of computer equipment and the resulting bruised kidney, his health had been totally normal since the team had been separated after Director Shepard's death.

Gibbs rolled his eyes. McGee had picked a fine time to start being secretive. "Vance, the food..." He started to get annoyed at McGee's continued blank look. "Vance told DiNozzo about the food your doctor requires you to have in your desk."

"Oh, that." McGee inwardly groaned. He couldn't believe that the Director would violate his privacy in such a manner.

"That?" Frustrated, Gibbs slammed his hand against the wall of the elevator, secretly pleased when McGee jumped. "Damn it, McGee, I expect the kind of crap from Tony, not you. I expect you to be honest about your health. I don't like hearing about something like this secondhand." His temper getting away from him, Gibbs ended his rant with McGee cornered. "You come to me first, not last, first."

The moment Gibbs questioned his honesty, McGee stiffened. "I have been honest, sir. I have passed every medical exam NCIS has required of me. When I was hired, Director Morrow received a recommendation to add extra requirements, including that I maintain a stash of emergency food items. Now that Vance is the Director, he's being... strict." That wasn't quite the word he wanted to use, but he settled for it. Wanting the conversation to be done, McGee reached out to flip the elevator back on as he announced his intentions. "I'll talk to Vance. He had no right to discuss this with DiNozzo."

The second he heard McGee refer to him as sir, Gibbs knew he'd been out of line with the younger man. He reached out and caught McGee's arm before he could touch the switch. "Hey, you're angry, I understand, but we're worried." His confession seemed to relax McGee.

The look on Gibbs' face was the same one of worry that Tim had seen in the mirror all the months the team was apart. "I'm fine, Boss. I wouldn't lie to you, especially about something that could put the rest of the team at risk." McGee hoped he could reassure his boss without telling him more, because he couldn't bring himself to talk about Vance's reasons.

Gibbs decided to back off and hope that Tim would come to him away from the office. "I know, McGee."

"You just needed a little reminder?" Gibbs snorted at McGee's words as the other man gave a short laugh.

"So, we're good?"

McGee relaxed now that Gibbs wasn't going to push him for answers. He knew that someday he'd have to tell Gibbs everything, but he wasn't ready. "Yeah, we're fine, Boss."

"If Vance is putting unfair restrictions on you, we can do something about it."

As good as it felt to have Gibbs ready to do battle for him, he didn't want the situation stirred up. "Nah, its okay."

Gibbs looked entirely unconvinced, but he allowed McGee to turn the elevator back on. "When you're ready, McGee, my door's open." He reached up and lightly tapped him on the back of the head. "I mean that, McGee."

"I know, Boss." When he stepped back into the squad room, McGee checked his watch. The weekly briefing was still going on, which meant that Vance would be in MTAC for at least another ten minutes, so he returned to his desk.

Tony was waiting, and the moment McGee sat down, he bounced up and moved to squat down next to Tim's chair. "I'm sorry, man, I didn't know."

"Tony..."

"We just got the team back together, you should have told us you were sick."

He hadn't seen this level of concern from DiNozzo since the Benedict shooting. "Really, I'm all right." He looked up and saw Vance leave MTAC for his office. McGee stood and stepped around Tony, headed for a showdown with the Director.

---NCIS---

"Ducky, why didn't you tell me Timmy was sick? " Abby charged into autopsy, demanding to know why this secret was kept from her.

Elbow deep in a cadaver, Ducky looked up in surprise. "Abigail? What on Earth are you talking about? Timothy was fine the last time I saw him."

Abby blinked back tears as she shook her head. "No, Tony said that the Director knows about it, that it's been going on for a long time."

"A chronic illness?" Ducky handed his instruments to Palmer and pulled off his gloves before setting Abby down on a nearby stool. "I have no idea what is going on, but even if I did, I could not discuss it, my dear. That would be highly unethical. If the Director is aware of it, and he's still allowed out in the field, then it can't be too serious. He will tell us when he's ready."

---NCIS---

After a brief knock, McGee let himself into Vance's office, only his innate manners preventing him from slamming the door. Vance knew why he was there and immediately started to apologize. McGee didn't even let him get started.

"You had no right to discuss my medical limitations and concerns with anyone without my permission."

"I know, and I'm sorry." Vance's quick apology seemed to deflate McGee's anger slightly and he continued to explain. "Agent Bidwell called me this morning."

McGee's face lost all color and he staggered at the remembered name. "No, no, no." Vance grabbed his arm and shoved him into a chair, pressing his head down between his knees.

"I know, kid, I know. I got off the phone and went down to warn you, saw DiNozzo stuffing his face and I lost it." Vance let Tim sit up, but continued to rub his back as he told him more. "Mink is back with the FBI."

"What? No." McGee laid his head in his hands as he faced the inevitable. "When's he coming for me?"

"Not today." Vance hooked the leg of another chair and pulled it close to sit opposite the other man. "I've got a call in to their director. I want the full story and I'm gonna lay down some ground rules for them. In the meantime, I want you to stay here at headquarters, just to be safe."

Tim didn't say a word to his team mates as he returned to his desk and started working on the pile of paperwork sitting in his inbox. The rest of his team watched him as they also continued to track down leads. After about twenty minutes, Tony stood up.

"How about lunch, my treat? We could all use some fresh air." He grabbed his coat as he watched Ziva do the same. Even Gibbs was pushing back his chair.

Tim was the only one not moving. "No thanks." Tony came over and sat on the corner of his desk.

"Are you still mad at me?"

"No, I was never mad at you, Tony."

Ziva stepped up to stand behind Tony as Gibbs watched. "Then why do you not wish to have lunch with us, McGee?"

He really didn't want to talk about it yet. "I just can't, Ziva. Director Vance doesn't want me to leave the building."

"Are you in trouble because of me?" Tony didn't have a clue what he seemed to have stirred up, but he did feel guilty about it.

"No, that's not it." Tim rubbed his forehead as he felt his chest tightening. His trembling hand stunned the rest of them.

Gibbs took immediate charge. "You two go, bring lunch back here." Ziva understood and pushed Tony out of the squad room in front of her. As soon as they left, Gibbs took Tony's place on the corner of McGee's desk "I thought you were okay."

"Me too."

Gibbs hopes that McGee could confide in him. Vance came back down the stairs, dashing his hopes. "It's time for some direct negotiations." He studied the young man. "Don't worry, Tim. Worse case scenario, we'll put you on a transport to one of the overseas offices tonight. He's not getting his hands on you." Vance clapped Tim on the back, then turned and left.

"Tim?"

"I thought it was over, Boss, I really thought it was over."

Gibbs has seen McGee develop from a timid, green rookie to a seasoned agent, watched him struggle with loosing a witness and stand up to protect his baby sister, but he'd never seen him look as frail as he did at that moment. "Whatever it is, we'll get through it. Now, can you tell me, or do you want to wait until they get back?"

"I think... I think I can only explain it once, Boss."

Gibbs laid his hand on McGee's back, where Vance had clapped him only moments earlier. "Then we wait."


	2. Chapter 2

**a/n - Glad you guys like this one. Both of these stories are going to be wild rides, so brace your feet.**

"What do you think is wrong with McGee?" After placing their orders, Ziva sat next to Tony on the padded bench.

DiNozzo leaned his head back against the wall behind him. "A better question would be why he didn't tell any of us. Okay, I mean I can maybe understand why he didn't tell me and maybe even you. But why didn't he tell Abby or Gibbs?"

"Perhaps it is serious enough that if it were officially known, he would not be allowed out in the field,"

"Then why is Vance the only one to know? That can't be it, Ziva." He cracked one eye open to see her reaction. "Vance doesn't strike me as the kind of director that would cover something like that up unless he's got a damn good reason."

She kept her expression neutral. "So what do we do about it?"

"I'm not ready to have the team torn apart again." DiNozzo sat up as their order came out of the kitchen. "He needs food, then we make sure he has food."

---NCIS---

"A number five with extra sauce." With a slight smile, DiNozzo set the take out box in front of McGee. "That's your favorite, right?" A gentle DiNozzo was unsettling and McGee almost choked on the coffee Ziva had handed him.

"Umm, thanks, guys." With the two of them hovering in anticipation, Tim opened the box and forced himself to eat a few bites, repeatedly looking towards the elevator for Vance.

It was an odd and tense lunch as the team watched McGee watch the elevator while he picked at his food. Ziva leaned over her desk, "McGee, I wish you would eat a little bit, for me." When he raised an eyebrow at her, she clarified. "If you have a medical condition that is affected by your eating habits, then it is important that you eat regular, healthy meals as often as possible." She glanced over her shoulder at Tony. "We have spoken about it and will do what is necessary to prevent the team from being separated again. Could you tell us what is wrong, so we know how to help you?"

Tim tossed his chopsticks into the box. "Ziva, it's not what you think." Before he could tell them anything, Vance arrived in the squad room accompanied by two NCIS agents along with Fornell. He went straight to McGee's desk, the three additional agents in tow. The rest of them unabashedly listened in as they circled around McGee in support, abandoning their own food.

Vance came straight to the point. "Fornell will be their lead, not Mink, and your team will be part of the task force." Tony and Ziva still didn't know what was going on, but they each put a hand on Tim's shoulders in support as he silently nodded to Vance. The Director gave them an approving look as he nodded to the other agents he'd brought with him. "I've also told the FBI that nothing happens until Dr. Norstrom clears you, which should take the rest of the day. Agents Miller and Sanderson will be your protection detail."

Ziva objected immediately, Tony only a few second behind. "We protect our own teammates, Director." Vance's focus never wavered from McGee.

"While you're at Bethesda, I'll bring Fornell and your team up to speed."

"Yes, sir." McGee looked young and fragile, even more so than when Vance had come through the squad room earlier in the day. Not making eye contact with any of his teammates, he stood and picked up his coat and weapon. If he'd looked up, he'd have seen the silent conversation between Gibbs and Sanderson.

_Take care of my boy._

_Of course._

---NCIS---

Vance looked longingly at the security of his own desk before sitting at the conference table in his office. "I've asked Dr. Mallard and Miss Sciuto to join us." The rest of the group settled in, Gibbs and Fornell on one side of the table, DiNozzo and David on the other. They all waited as Vance leaned back in his chair, tapping his chin, lost in thought. Both looking confused, Ducky and Abby arrived in the office. Abby took the chair next to Gibbs, leaving the last seat for Ducky. With one last curious glance at Gibbs, he sat next to DiNozzo.

Fornell watched Vance. "Not that I'm complaining, but do you want to tell me why Mink is back from a medical retirement and why Bidwell is back at Quantico?"

"Do you remember your first case?" Not the response he was expecting, and Fornell looked to Gibbs for answers. Gibbs shrugged and across the table, Tony and Ziva looked blankly at each other. Eventually, Gibbs answered for the group.

"I think we all remember our first cases, Leon."

Vance continued on, still staring off into space. "Mine was a missing child, the son of a Navy officer. The kid was a genius, being bullied by the other kids, and then one day he didn't come home."

"Oh, God." The sick suspicion that was building in his gut was mirrored in the faces of the rest of his team. Gibbs rubbed his forehead as a faint memory started to nag at him. "The boy's name?"

It wasn't really a surprise to any of them. "Timothy McGee."

"Oh, Timmy." Abby had a death grip on Gibbs' hand.

A slow nod. "The locals thought he was hiding at first. They knew he was being chased on his bike by a group of older boys the last time he was seen. Then they found his mangled bike hidden in some bushes over thirty miles away from where he'd last been spotted."

"That's a long way for a child to go on his bicycle."

"Yes, it is, Officer David. That's when NCIS was called in. We arrived on the scene only about an hour before Agent Mink and his team from the FBI. Tim was physically similar to seven other boys of the same approximate age that had been kidnapped and murdered over the previous four years."

"Murdered? You're saying that some monster had McGee?" Abby was blinking back tears. "But you found him before that man could hurt him, right?"

"At that point, they'd found five of the bodies, scattered across three different states." Vance was reciting the information without truly registering the shocked reactions around him. After all these years, it was still the only way he could face the memories. "Some were found only a few days after they had been dumped, some over a year, but the one consistency was that they all died within two to three months after they'd disappeared."

Fornell had worked enough missing and kidnapping cases to know the score. "That gave you a time frame. You knew how long you had to find Tim before he ended up dead like the rest of them."

"Well, obviously you found him, Director, so..."

"Not exactly, DiNozzo." For the first time since the briefing started, Vance looked around the room, making eye contact with each of them. "It meant that after four months, we shifted our focus from rescue to recovery."

"I remember the case." Gibbs' surprise announcement took the attention off of Vance. "I was stationed at Camp Pendleton at the time. We were brought in to help with the search."

"Gibbs, you were the one that found him?" Abby looked so hopeful, he hated to break her heart.

"No, Abs, we found the skeletal remains of one of the other missing boys, but we didn't find a surviving victim." He turned to Vance for the rest of the story.

While Gibbs had been talking, Vance moved to his desk and retrieved a folder from the bottom drawer. It was discolored from age and was the style of case folders discontinued many years ago. Instead of tossing it onto the table, as was the norm at the agency, he sat down still holding it. "The stress of the kidnapping almost killed his mother. She went into premature labor just a few weeks after he was taken."

"With Sarah." Gibbs thought back to a case years earlier where the young man had been so uncomfortable around a baby and had admitted he'd never held one. His comment hadn't made sense at the time, now it did, as did his almost obsessive need to protect her. Across the table, DiNozzo's face showed he'd reached the same understanding.

"When we reached the six month anniversary his father felt she needed the closure." Vance gave a bitter laugh. "I attended his funeral, Gibbs. I promised his parents that someday we'd recover his body so they could place his remains in the coffin, and Tim's file became my first cold case. Another kidnapping occurred, and then another. Both of those bodies were located, along with one of the earlier victims. By now there were ten victims and nine recovered bodies. Tim was the only victim that was a Navy dependent, so the case was officially turned back over to the FBI."

"All of the victims were recovered but McGee." Tony was getting angry. "Didn't it occur to any of you how strange that was?"

"Of course it did." Vance slammed his hands down on the table. "My hands were tied, I was the Probie of my team, our team had to answer to the FBI, to Mink. The bodies were scattered over a thousand square miles of rough terrain."

Fornell had access to the original FBI file, but he couldn't tear himself away long enough to read it. "How was McGee found?"

"Eventually a man named Raymond Kehoe was caught in the process of kidnapping a young boy. He had managed to stay completely off the radar before that. By then..." Vance stopped and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I was getting ready to fly out to Europe, but I talked the Director into letting me join back up with the task force. I wanted, no, I needed to be able to give his family closure."

Everyone else in the room understood Vance's sentiments. No case was worse than one involving a child and more than one agent had been destroyed by the guilt. Abby needed to know. "How long?"

He could have pretended to not understand the question, but he didn't. "Twenty-one months. He had been missing for twenty-one months by that point."

"Twenty-one..."

"Months, months?"

"My God..."

"Timothy..."

It was Gibbs voice that overrode the commotion. "When did you realize he was still alive, Leon?"

"We... the task force worked round the clock at Kehoe's ranch. Cadaver dogs were brought in; they found remains that hadn't been associated with the case up until then. We worked around the clock, sorting and logging all the evidence, going through Kehoe's journals. We found the clothes Tim was wearing when he was abducted, we found... pictures of him, beaten and bloodied... his father called me every day to see if we'd found his remains... and then one day..."

"One day?" Gibbs knew Tim had survived whatever had happened, but it didn't make it easier.

"Joe Adams spilled a cup of coffee."

One of the few things Fornell knew coming in was that Special Agent Joseph Adams had eaten his gun while working on the Kehoe case. He leaned forward, hoping for some answers. "What was so important about some spilled coffee?"

"It was just this old, dirty area rug, but he used a lot of milk in his coffee. The place smelled bad enough without the scent of spoiled milk, so he was going to take the rug outside. Up until that moment, we had no idea there was a basement in the house."

"A trapdoor." It was Ziva who made the connection first.

"Yeah, a trapdoor, a ladder and a soundproof room where he had kept all of the boys he'd taken."

"Was Timmy..."

At Abby's question Vance leaned back to stare at the ceiling. "He was laying on a cot, curled up, nothing but skin and bones. God, we were so sure he was dead, but when Joe reached out to close his eyes, he took a breath. Don't you see?" Vance straightened up and looked around the room. "Kehoe had fed his victims just enough to keep them alive. And then... God, it was nineteen days between when Kehoe was arrested and when we found Tim. Nineteen days with no food. He had access to water for a while, but that was it. Nineteen days, and we were literally on top of him."

"You could not have known."

"Do you honestly think that makes it any better, Officer David? While we were sitting up there, that little boy was slowly starving to death right under our feet. Kehoe was sitting in his cell laughing the whole time. He didn't kill McGee, but he knew we were."

Across from him, Gibbs watched Tony struggle with his newly found knowledge. The younger man shook his head as he looked to Gibbs. "Boss, if I'd known, I never would have..."

"I know, Tony, and so does McGee." DiNozzo barely responded to Gibbs' words, instead turning to Vance to listen to the rest.

Vance knew he owed DiNozzo an apology. "Tim spent months recovering in a hospital. It was a year before he stopped hording food and three years before he stopped having panic attacks when he was hungry, but I think he still recovered faster that any of the adults involved. When he graduated from FLETC, I saw his mother slip a candy bar in his pocket when she hugged him and I insisted he always have some sort of emergency source of food, even talked Tom Morrow make it part of his requirements." The sad smile from DiNozzo told Vance that his reaction was understood.

"Why bring it all up now, Director? Timothy had obviously been able to deal with the memories up until now."

Ziva looked between Ducky and Vance. "Kehoe is still in prison, is he not?"

"He's still locked up, but somebody is trying to recreate his crimes. Mink is convinced that Tim remembers more than he's ever told anyone. He wants McGee handed over to him for additional interviews." The murmurs of protest in the room told him he needn't worry about protecting the young man. He now had plenty of help.

Fornell reached out for the file Vance was still holding onto. "I'd understand if it is, but McGee's trip to the doctor today... was that just to get him out of here while we talk about this?"

"He's recovered better than anyone thought possible, but I'm sure Dr. Mallard can tell you the long term medical risks for McGee after such an experience. Since he's also recovering from an injury, I want to make sure he's up to this."

Ducky was upset that the Director was giving such personal information to Tim's team, but at the same time he knew that they needed to know and more importantly, Tim needed them to know if he was going to be forced to relive such a horrific time in his life. He compromised by speaking in generalities. "Children who have suffered from starvation for an extended period of time tend to have a higher level of body fat as adults. They also have a higher risk of heart and vascular problems later in life. Kidney problems are also a concern. That would be my greatest concern after his recent hospitalization."

"Wait a minute, what injury, when was he hospitalized? Tony looked between the team members who had been stateside while he and Ziva were away. "What happened to him?"

"He got hit in the back with some equipment they were moving down in the sub-basement." Abby's pigtails bounced as she talked. "They kept him in the hospital until he stopped peeing blood, and then he was off work for another week after that. I had to take care of Jethro until the doctors gave him the all clear. You didn't know?"

"No, Abby, I didn't know. I was in the middle of the ocean, remember? Is he all right?"

Ducky correctly interpreted the expression on Vance's face. "With his added risk factors, I'll need to monitor his condition to make sure the damage fully resolves."

Fornell had also seen the expression on Vance's face and decided he wasn't going to argue if they created an out for McGee in case the situation became too much.


	3. Chapter 3

**a/n - The plot continues to thicken. Enjoy.**

Tim sat on the hard cushion of the exam table, ignoring the desire to swing his feet. Unlike other agents, his annual physical had always included a trip to his friendly cardiologist and another to his urologist. Since he'd seen Dr. Hale just a few days ago for a follow up to his kidney injury, he was hoping to bypass that exam. Dr. Norstrom's exam would be more than enough for today. The doctor in question knocked on the exam room door and then entered with a stream of nurses and equipment trailing behind him.

"Hello, Timothy. After hearing from Director Vance today, we're going to do a few extra tests in addition to your regular exam." He moved to the sink to scrub his hands as the nurses began to set up the equipment. Some of it Tim recognized, some he didn't and that made him nervous.

"You know I feel fine and every exam I've had has come back all right. Why all this extra stuff this time?" Tim shifted, listening to the paper cover crunch underneath him. "If we're just killing time while Vance gets things under control with the FBI then I can go grab some coffee or something."

Dr. Norstrom watched as he slowly dried his hands. He'd been a young intern the day Timothy McGee had been airlifted to the Naval hospital he'd been assigned to. Battered, traumatized, and only semi-conscious, he'd been the only one on duty that night that could even touch the boy, let alone treat him. All these years later and he was once again part of Tim's primary care team. His recovery had been remarkable, some would even say miraculous, but the risks were still there, would always be there. Adding in the stress of facing the memories of that horrific time, the monster that hurt him and the maniac who refused to accept that young Tim was completely a victim, he understood Vance's fear that their young survivor would suffer under the strain.

---NCIS---

No one mentioned the fact that Vance's hands were shaking when he broke open the seal on the old file folder and finally handed it over to Fornell. With Gibbs right at his shoulder and the rest of the team across from him, Fornell opened the file. Pages and pages of notes were set aside to be read through later to expose the photos underneath. Even Fornell felt his stomach roll at the images he was seeing, he couldn't imagine what it was doing to McGee's friends and teammates.

Abby reached across Gibbs to lightly touch one of the pictures. "They look like pictures from the concentration camps in World War II, except it's McGee." Gibbs looked up at a barely audible moan, Tony was shaking his head as he rocked back and forth ever so slightly.

"Tony?"

Instead of answering, DiNozzo jumped up, knocking his chair over in his rush to the bathroom. Luckily there was a private restroom attached to the Director's office, otherwise he would have never made it. At the sound of retching Ducky started to stand, but Gibbs reached over and stopped him. "Let me."

Gibbs closed the door behind him as DiNozzo shakily moved from the toilet to the sink to wash out his mouth. Not saying anything, Gibbs handed him a towel when he was done, knowing Tony would talk when he was ready.

"I've been teasing him for years about his weight, about what he eats, I've even tricked him into throwing away his lunch." DiNozzo leaned against the sink, letting his chin drop onto his chest. "God, he must hate me."

"I don't think McGee's capable of hating anybody."

"How do I..."

"Can't change the past, DiNozzo. All you can do is to move forward. He's going to need some support when he faces this. That's where your focus should be." Gibbs waited until Tony looked up to meet his eyes in the mirror, then squeezed his shoulder and left, giving him some privacy to pull himself together.

When Tony came out, only Vance was left in his office, still sitting at the table. "DiNozzo, I owe you an apology. I overreacted when I saw you eating at McGee's desk."

"How long had it been since you found out about McGee's case becoming active again?" He had his suspicions, but wanted to be sure.

Vance gave a sad laugh. "About five minutes."

"Then you don't owe me an apology, Director." Tony returned the sad smile and sat down to read through the entire file.

---NCIS---

Tobias Fornell sat at the bar waiting for his companion to arrive. He wasn't one for drinking in the middle of the afternoon, but after the briefing he'd endured at NCIS, he needed it. Gibbs had threatened to come with him, but he had convinced the other man to let him do this on his own. Eventually he saw Larry Mink climb out of his car and lumber into the bar. They had never worked a case together, in fact Fornell had to look up his file to know what the man looked like. The file had been unremarkable right up to the point when the McGee family went to court to prevent Mink from having any contact with their son. After that, Mink had bounced from one field office to the next as his psychological evaluations spiraled downward until he was forced to take a leave of absence. Now it was Fornell's job to not only solve the case, but to keep Mink in line and keep Gibbs from killing the man if he made a move towards McGee. In truth, he'd rather face down a bus load of terrorists than deal with this case and its complications. Unfortunately, he wasn't being given the choice.

Mink didn't hesitate when he walked into the tavern. Either he had also been given a photo, or Fornell's appearance screamed Fed, because Mink never looked at another patron as he walked across the crowded room. "You Fornell?"

Fornell slowly nodded as he gave an appraising look. The photo in Mink's file was only ten years old, but the man standing in front of him looked at least twenty years older. His face was puffy and flushed, giving credence to the rumors that he'd been hitting the bottle pretty hard since his forced retirement. The walk from his car to the table had him panting and sweating and obviously in a foul mood.

The second Fornell nodded, Mink slammed his hands down on the table in an apparent attempt to intimidate him. "Director Vance make you his lapdog yet?" The slurred emphasis on Vance's title didn't impress Fornell.

"If you don't want to be on this task force, I can make your retirement permanent this time."

"On it? I should be running it. Nobody knows Kehoe like I do. I've spent my entire career on that dirtbag." Mink sat down and waved a waitress over to order a drink. Fornell switched over to coffee, needing a clear head to deal with the situation.

"Kehoe is still in prison, and it seems to me that you spent a lot of time terrorizing his victim."

"If you ask me, that kid was no victim."

Fornell wanted to tear into him on the spot, but the return of the waitress with their drinks made him wait. Once she was gone, he reached out and grabbed Mink's arm. "He was a little boy who spent almost two years as a prisoner in that hellhole."

Mink downed his whiskey in one shot and used the empty glass to flag down the waitress again. "Ask yourself exactly what he did to make Kehoe keep him instead of any of his other victims." The second glass emptied as quickly as the first, but this time Fornell waved the waitress away. Angry, Mink stood up and threw a few bills on the table. "While you're at it, ask yourself why his parents never let him make a formal statement. What the hell were they hiding? In the meantime, we'll all sit around while Director Vance drags the boy to every doctor he can think of to let the case get cold."

After adding his own money to the pile of bills on the table, Fornell slowly sipped his coffee. Mink may be a thorn in his side, but getting past Gibbs for answers from McGee was going to be his real problem.


	4. Chapter 4

**a/n - Wow, we had a wind storm last night. Here's a new chapter, I'll have a new chapter of Shattered Innocence up later today, depending on nappage with the little ones.**

Every time the elevator door opened, four heads swiveled in response. Gibbs bit back a smile, but of course he had the edge as he was waiting for a text message from the downstairs security guard. He could order Abby and Ducky back to their respective duties, but with no cases pending other than McGee's he didn't see the point. He also hoped that having a united front of friends who were worried about him would make it easier for McGee.

When the text finally came, Gibbs casually put away the cold case file he was pretending to read so he was ready when the elevator arrived. The rest of the group were only a few seconds behind in their response.

Abby reached him first, her usual energetic hug toned down when she saw his exhaustion. "You okay, McGee? You don't look so good." Ducky was right behind her, already looking him over as he listened. Before he could tell them anything, Vance appeared on the catwalk and waved them up to his office. They all traipsed upstairs, Ziva taking up the rear after detouring to grab McGee's lunch from the break room refrigerator.

"Sit down, McGee." The more formal use of his last name made Tim feel a little more comfortable as he sat in the chair Vance was pointing at. "How did it go at the hospital?"

Everyone perked up at the question until they saw the grimace on McGee's face. "He's admitting me in the morning for a cardiac cath." His raspy voice didn't do anything to decrease the worry in the room.

"What indications did they find in your EKG?" Ducky was all business as he pulled a chair closer to McGee and sat down, already checking his pulse.

Tim submitted to the quick exam, even though he'd had his fill after most of the afternoon at Dr. Norstrom's office. "The EKG showed some changes. Not bad, just different."

"Did they do an echo exam, then?"

"Two actually, both the standard transthoracic and a transesophageal."

"Ahh, that explains the sore throat and your exhaustion." Ducky looked up when Ziva came in with the reheated Chinese food. "Nothing hot to eat or drink for the next twenty-four hours I'm afraid my dear."

"Translation, Dr. Mallard?" Vance knew the basics of the standard tests McGee was ordered to undergo every year but that last one was a new term.

"Trans-esophageal," Ducky broke down the word as if he were explaining it to a child. "Instead of having the transducer against the chest, it is inserted down through the esophagus to rest against the back side of the heart."

Vance had to agree with the horrified expression he saw on DiNozzo's face, but as Director he couldn't show it. "That sounds uncomfortable. Did they have results for you yet?"

"No." Tim looked longingly at both the food and the cup in Gibbs' hand. "After the cath tomorrow he'll look at everything together Apparently, he's comparing the scar tissue to the way it looked when I started at the agency."

"What time do you need to be back at the hospital, McGee?" There may be a lot they needed to know before the team left for the west coast, but Gibbs was more concerned with taking care of his agent tonight.

He hadn't planned on this becoming a group activity, but one look at the surrounding faces told him not to argue. "I need to be checked in at 0600. They said I'd be there until late afternoon." He looked at Ducky, hoping he could add the details. He'd been so surprised by the planned hospitalization that he hadn't asked the doctor as many questions as he knew he should have.

Ducky correctly interpreted the silent request for help. "Cardiac catheterizations are a serious business, that's why they're going to be monitoring him for so long afterward, but he should be fine. Now, Timothy, you should get a good night's sleep tonight; you'll want to be well rested for tomorrow."

"He'll be staying at my place, Duck. I'll make sure he sleeps."

"Very well, Jethro. I'll stop in and check on you this evening, Timothy." Hoping that Vance would take the hint and wrap things up quickly, Ducky stood and held his hand out to Abby. "Come along, my dear. We'll let them finish discussing the case so Jethro can get Timothy home with him to rest. He's had a long and difficult day and tomorrow will be even longer for the lad." Abby apparently got the message and gave Vance a hard look before she let Ducky lead her out of the office.

---NCIS---

Gibbs wasn't at all surprised when several cars pulled into his driveway that night. He and McGee had only been there a few minutes when Ducky arrived, claiming the need to check on McGee's throat. Before Gibbs could figure out what he could feed McGee that was soft and cold, Tony arrived with a strawberry milkshake for his partner. Before the paper was torn off the straw, Ziva arrived with a mango smoothie. After a bit of jostling, they decided that the smoothie was dinner, since it had protein powder added to it, and the milkshake was dessert. That was before Abby arrived with a quart of raspberry sorbet and Jethro, so the large dog could say goodnight.

Rather than witness what the dog's nails were doing to his hardwood floors, Gibbs slipped upstairs to change the sheets on his bed. Ducky quietly joined him, using the boisterous laughter downstairs as a cover. Together, the two men quickly stripped the sheets and replaced them with a fresh set. They were almost done with the last blanket before Gibbs spoke. "What they're doing to him tomorrow, is it risky?"

Ducky was facing away from Gibbs, so he allowed himself a slight smile before schooling his features. The casual question didn't fool him for a second. "Every surgical procedure has some risk, Jethro, but Dr. Norstrom is very good at what he does. During the procedure Timothy will feel some pressure and discomfort at the incision site, and of course..."

"What? Wait a minute, what do you mean, he's going to feel it, he'll be awake?" Gibbs sank down on the edge of the bed.

"He'll be given a mild sedative, but yes, he will be awake for the tests." Ducky sat next to his old friend. "It may sound frightening, but he will be in the best of hands, and in a well prepared hospital. If anything goes wrong, they'll be able to deal with it quickly right there in the operating room. My only real concern is Timothy's history of allergies, but Dr. Norstrom has assured me that they will run an allergy test before injecting the dye into his heart." Ducky's words weren't quite the reassurance that he thought they were, but Gibbs tried not to show it.

"Why will he have to stay so long after they're done? Do they really have to monitor his heart that many hours?"

"They'll be more concerned with the incision site. The surgeon will be cutting into his femoral artery for the procedure. That's what they'll be monitoring, to make sure the incision into the artery doesn't open back up. I don't have to tell you how critical that could be if..."

"I thought you said it wasn't risky."

This time Ducky did smile, hoping it was somewhat reassuring. "It's not. As long as the doctors do their job properly and Timothy takes his recovery seriously, then everything should be fine."

"Should be fine?" Both men turned at the new voice. Tony stood in the doorway staring at Ducky. "I've seen people bleed out in minutes after severing their femoral artery, and they're going to deliberately cut into his?"

Ducky resisted the temptation to roll his eyes, knowing how worried Tim's team mates were about this. "It's a very small incision, Tony, and they will watch it very closely. He will be fine."

---NCIS---

Abby's suggestion of a slumber party was thoroughly shot down by Gibbs, who reminded her that the idea was for McGee to get a good night's sleep, not to stay up listening to ghost stories. Once Ducky, the ladies and the dog were out the door, Gibbs turned his attention to McGee, indicating the stairs with a jerk of his head. "Bed's all ready for you, McGee."

There were three bedrooms in the older craftsman bungalow. One was used as a storage room, and Kelly's bedroom remained as it was the day the family had left for deployment at Camp Pendleton. "Boss, I can't take your bed. I'll be fine down here."

"McGee, you're having a surgical procedure in the morning, you're not sleeping on the damn sofa."

Knowing he wasn't going to win the argument, Tim picked up his overnight bag and turned towards the stairs. "Thanks, Boss, I'll see you in the morning."

---NCIS---

Remembering that vanilla pudding had been a comfort food for a young McGee during his long recovery, Vance stopped at a strip mall not too far from Gibbs' home. The anchor store was a trendy grocery store, but he was pretty sure they would have some sort of pudding there. Before he could get out of his car, he saw DiNozzo coming out of the ice cream shop across the street with a large Styrofoam cup. When the agent left the parking lot, he turned towards Gibbs' street. His car had just barely rounded the corner before Ziva David pulled into the parking lot, only a few rows down from where Vance was parked. He watched as she walked past the store and into a smoothie shop further down. She returned to her car with a large cup, before following the same path as DiNozzo. When Abby Sciuto dashed into the grocery store and then came out clutching a quart of their specialty fruit sorbet, he knew that Tim was being well taken care of by his team. What he didn't know was exactly how that made him feel.

---NCIS---

Once McGee was upstairs, Tony kicked off his shoes, grinning at Gibbs. "Which sofa you sleeping on, Boss?" Without waiting for an answer, he went into the kitchen and filled a glass of water before taking it upstairs.

The blankets were folded back and Tim was sitting on the edge of the bed, in his boxers, when Tony tapped on the door frame. "Here, I thought you might need a drink of water tonight." The younger man took it with a smile and set the glass down on the nightstand.

"Thanks, Tony, but I can't have any liquids after midnight."

"Oh, right, sorry." Tony fidgeted for a minute before continuing. "That's why I came up, to apologize."

Tim studied the other man. He looked troubled, but McGee wasn't sure why. "Tony, if you're still worried about what Vance said about those protein bars, don't worry about it."

"It's not that. Well yeah, it is, but it's more than that." He held up the blankets and waited for Tim to swing his legs up on the bed, ignoring the raised eyebrow as he tucked him in. Once that was accomplished, Tony sat on the bed, staring at his hands. "All the times I've given you crap, well, if I'd have known, about, well, you know..." His words faded off as he struggled with the enormity of the guilt he was feeling.

Tim was looking over Tony's shoulder, thinking back. "Do you remember right after I joined the team and I bought a burger for myself, but I didn't have enough money to get you one too?"

Tony cringed, remembering what he had done. It had seemed funny at the time, but now it just made him sick. "Yeah, I tricked you into throwing it away."

Tim continued on, "I was so hungry, my stomach hurt, but I tossed it in the garbage and I did my job." He looked at Tony and to the older man's surprise, he smiled. "For the first time I knew, I really knew, that I could do my job. You helped me prove to myself that I wasn't his victim anymore, so thank you."

"You're thanking me for reminding you of that animal? Anybody ever tell you you're strange, McGee?"

"Yeah, a time or two." Tim's eyes were closed now as he gave into his exhaustion. Tony saw this and patted his knee.

"I'll shut up and let you get to sleep."

"It's okay... kinda nice..."

"What do you mean?"

Tim didn't open his eyes, but he turned onto his side facing Tony, with his hand tucked under his chin. "When he had me, the worst part wasn't him hurting me, or even being hungry. It was the silence. Months would go by and I never got to hear a sound, just locked up in that room."

Tony sat, leaning against the headboard and rested his hand on Tim's shoulder. "Hey did I ever tell you about this bank robber I had to chase down in Baltimore? The guy's getaway car got towed while he...

---NCIS---

Gibbs cleaned up downstairs before looking for his wayward agent, planning on chasing him downstairs to let McGee get some sleep. As he reached the top of the stairs, he could hear voices.

_"I'll shut up and let you get to sleep."_

_"It's okay... kinda nice..."_

_"What do you mean?"_

He listened for a moment longer, then turned and went downstairs, a sad smile on his face.


	5. Chapter 5

**a/n - You didn't think I'd forgotten about this one, did you? BTW, I do a great deal of research for these stories. If something seems "wrong" there's always a good reason. As far as how Tim survived when he was so badly starved before Kehoe was arrested? You've already gotten the clue in an earlier chapter.**

"He's in the shower." Tony's announcement was muffled by the fact that he had his head in Gibbs' refrigerator. He came out with the orange juice and poured a glass, downing it in seconds. "Don't want to eat in front of him, but man, I'm thirsty."

Gibbs gave a nod. "Not surprised, you talked most of the night."

"Thanks for the blanket." Tony wasn't sure exactly when he'd fallen asleep, propped up on the bed, but he'd awaken to find a blanket draped over him, and an extra pillow wedged under him. Gibbs just waved off the thanks as he answered his phone, moving out onto the deck. Tony watched him through the window as he rinsed out his glass. The older man was getting agitated with whoever was on the other end of the call. It was still dark out and Tony could only see him clearly when his pacing brought him close to the light coming through the windows.

Gibbs looked upstairs as he came back inside. The shower was off, so McGee would be joining them in a few minutes. "We've got a briefing at headquarters at 0700."

"He'll just be going into surgery, Boss. You can't be serious."

Gibbs gave him the explanation he'd just been given by Vance. "Briefing's not an option. It can either be while he's in surgery when we can't be with him, or later, when we could be. Which would you rather?"

As much as he hated it, he knew Gibbs was right. "Still, somebody should be there with him."

"Ducky will be there, they've authorized him to be in the operating room with McGee, and Abby will be in the waiting room. In fact, she's on her way here to pick him up."

Tony wasn't thrilled that they weren't going to even have that, but he knew Abby would want some time with their friend. Headlights in the driveway and footsteps coming down the hall, told him that it was time. "Hey, McGee, Abby's here. She's going to be your ride to Bethesda this morning. Gibbs and I will catch up with you there, later."

"Umm, okay." McGee came into the kitchen, looking a little unsure. Last night the plans had been for Gibbs and DiNozzo to drive him to the hospital.

Gibbs gave him a reassuring shoulder squeeze as Abby came in. "We'll be done and back at the hospital by the time they let you have visitors, McGee, don't worry. Abby will keep you company until you go in, and Ducky will be with you during the procedure."

"Absolutely." Abby could be surprisingly gentle when she wanted to be. After giving a meaningful look to the other two men, she stepped close to McGee and wrapped her arms around him, leaving them loosely wrapped around his waist as she rested her head on his other shoulder. "You're not going to be alone, I promise."

Once the other two had let go of McGee, Tony picked up his coat and held it out for him. "Have you got everything you need? Is there anything you need from your apartment? Ziva can stop there on her way. How about slippers and a bathrobe?"

McGee looked over his shoulder as he slipped into the held coat. "It's just an outpatient procedure, Tony. Besides, I don't even own slippers or a robe. I'll be fine."

"Of course you'll be fine, McGee. We'll bring you some real food as soon as your doctors give the all clear." Gibbs didn't look entirely convinced by his own words, but Tim appreciated the effort.

---NCIS---

They were almost a mile from Gibbs' house before Abby said anything. "I'm sorry, McGee."

"For what?" He was genuinely baffled by her apology. They were at a red light, so she turned to look him in the eye.

"I'm sorry that you never felt that you could confide in us. This is a terrible thing to have to carry around by yourself." The light changed and Abby returned her attention to the road, but McGee could see how bright her eyes were as they passed under a streetlight.

"Abby, it wasn't that I didn't feel like I could confide." He paused, trying to put it into words. "It's just that people treat you differently when they know something like that has happened. What good is it to recover if everybody treats you like you're still the victim? I just wanted a chance to prove that I was fine, that I could do the job."

She whacked his arm without taking her eyes off the road. "Gibbs choosing you for his team proved that he thought you could do the job. For such a smart guy, you can be an idiot at times."

"Thanks, Abby."

---NCIS---

Ziva was already in the conference room with Vance when Gibbs and DiNozzo arrived. Both men helped themselves to the coffee before they sat down. Jimmy Palmer joined them, sitting in for Ducky.

"McGee get off to the hospital all right?"

"Yes, sir." Gibbs took a sip of the hot liquid before he continued. "Abby drove him and Ducky is meeting them there."

"Good, now before Agent Fornell and Agent Mink arrive, I have promised the FBI that Gibbs will keep his men in check." He gave a pointed look at Ziva, smiling. She returned the smile as Gibbs chuckled and answered.

"I'm sure my 'men' will behave."

"I'm glad to hear that." Fornell walked in, Mink following in his wake. By the smirk on Fornell's face, he approved of the restriction and the apparent loophole. Mink sat as far away from the group as he could and glared at Vance. Fornell gave him the briefest of glances before continuing. "We're scheduled to fly out later today, so let's get this briefing over. So far, luckily, we only have one victim found dead less than seventy two hours after he went missing."

"That doesn't fit the original murders at all. Why do you think there's any connection?" Tony had read through the file on Tim and the other victims the day before and knew the timetable for the other victims.

"Two reasons. First, the body had been coated with Swedish pine tar soap."

Tony's knowledge of the case might be new, but there were things Leon Vance would never forget. "God, I'd hoped to never smell that again."

When he didn't explain further, Tony stepped in to bring the rest of his team up to speed. "The bodies that were found before heavy decomp set in were all coated with it. Apparently, it has a very distinctive, smokey smell."

Gibbs already hated everything about this case. "What else? You said two reasons."

"This," Fornell put a picture of a young boy up on the plasma.

"That's McGee."

"No, it's not, Director." Fornell pulled up another picture, putting the two side by side. "This is McGee. The picture was taken a few months before he was kidnapped."

"My God." Gibbs stood and moved closer to the wall mounted plasma. If it weren't for the differences in the ages of the photos as shown by both the clarity of the images and the clothing worn by the two boys, he would have assumed the two were twins.

DiNozzo came up to stand behind Gibbs. "Kehoe had a certain type of boys that he liked."

"Yeah, like your partner." Mink spoke for the first time, glaring at Vance as he continued. "How long are you going to hide him from me?"

Vance glared back, not the least bit intimidated. "He's currently on an operating table. Would you have preferred to gown up and have the briefing there?"


	6. Chapter 6

Ducky leaned over and patted Tim's arm. "How are you doing, Timothy?" The nurse next to him looked over at Dr. Norstrom for his approval before she injected the dye through the tube in his groin. McGee's eyes widened slightly as the chemical hit his heart.

"Wow, that's different." He tried to move around a bit, but Ducky's hand on his head kept him still.

"Explain 'wow', tell me what you're feeling." Ducky watched Tim's reaction carefully. His forehead was dotted with sweat and his heart rate had significantly increased. His pulse dropped back down to a more normal range almost as quickly as it had jumped.

"Now I know why my mother complains about hot flashes."

Dr. Norstrom smiled indulgently. He'd heard that comment more than a few times. "If you feel anything beyond that, any pain whatsoever, I want you to tell us immediately." When Tim gave a slight nod, he returned his attention to the screen in the darkened room.

The tiny x-ray camera was threaded through the arteries into place. It took almost an hour, repeatedly shifting the camera and asking McGee to hold his breath, but he got all the images he wanted of every angle of the heart. Next, he threaded a small device through the catheter to take a tissue sample of the heart muscle.

Timing was imperative as the tiny equipment went through the moving valves in McGee's heart. Ducky watched intently as the procedure wrapped up, not relaxing until the very last part of the catheter was removed and they were putting pressure on the incision site. "You did fine, Timothy. Now, just rest and they'll have you in a recovery room very soon."

"Thanks, Ducky." Tim closed his eyes. Even though he had not done anything more strenuous than hold his breath, he still felt exhausted. Dr. Norstrom patted his arm.

"Dr. Mallard is right. Now, Dr. Hale tells me that there is still some residual blood showing up from your kidney, so we're going to force some fluids for a few hours. I'd feel better about you going across country if we knew you were fully recovered from your injuries." Tim nodded without opening his eyes as he felt the prick of another IV being started in his arm.

---NCIS---

Vance looked at the two FBI agents sitting across from him. "Are you watching Kehoe's visitors yet? Your unsub has too much inside knowledge. He must have had contact with Kehoe at some point."

"Or McGee." Mink finally made his opinion known.

Vance jumped in before Gibbs could. "If you're going to accuse his one survivor, then you'd better add all of us that were on the original task force, starting with yourself, Mink."

"Has McGee ever read the file about his kidnapping?" Tony's question distracted Vance for a second as he shook his head.

"No, you saw me break the seal in my office." He looked over at Fornell. "You were there too, and I guarantee you that he didn't read it before it was sealed."

"I'm just saying..."

Fornell wasn't happy with Mink and decided to step in before the temptation to hand him over to Officer David became too great. "I will be the one interviewing Agent McGee after his doctors clear him. Any questions you have, Agent Mink, you bring them to me."

"So that's the way it's going to be?"

"Yeah, that's the way it's going to be."

---NCIS---

Abby looked up as the door opened a few inches and DiNozzo's face peered through the opening at her. "Is he awake?" The stage whisper was loud enough to be heard at the end of the hall.

"If he wasn't, I'm sure he is now." Gibbs propelled DiNozzo into the room with a head slap, pleased to see the smile on McGee's face. "Hey, McGee, how are you feeling?"

"I'm all right, Boss." He looked up at Abby who had pressed her hand against his forehead the second the door started to open. "Relax, Abs, I'm not going to try to move." The pressure decreased, but she didn't remove her hand.

Gibbs took in the scene. McGee was flat on his back, only a thin pillow under his head. Two IV's were running into his arm and several empty glasses were on the table. A partially full glass had a straw in it, bent significantly. Abby picked that one up and held it for McGee so that he could drink without lifting his head. The end result of all that fluid could be seen in the bag at the foot of the bed. Gibbs couldn't help but wince, remembering his own uncomfortable encounters with a Foley catheter.

"Why can't you move? Did something go wrong?" Tony was also taking in the scene as he moved further into the room.

Now that the two men were through the door, Ziva was able to come in and join the conversation. "Is it because of the incision site?" Abby didn't give him a chance to answer.

"They don't want any strain on his groin or for him to move his leg at all for the next couple of hours. A nurse comes in every fifteen minutes to check that there is no bleeding. I could check for him, but Mr. Modest here won't let me." The man in question blushed bright red.

"Abby!"

"TMI, Miss Sciuto." Multiple hands shot out to hold down McGee as Director Vance walked into the room. Abby was unrepentant as she continued to tease him.

"What? It's not like I haven't seen it all before."

"Do tell."

"Ziva!"

"Ladies!" Both of them froze as Gibbs put his foot down. "We don't need his blood pressure so high that he springs a leak."

"Quite right, Jethro." Ducky and Dr. Norstrom came in and went straight to the bed, lifting the blanket to check the incision. Ziva raised up on her toes, hoping for a peek before Tony snagged her jacket and pulled her back out of the way.

Dr. Norstrom was pleased with Tim's recovery. "It looks like the collagen seal is doing its job. How'd you like to sit up a little bit?" He was already reaching for the bed controls.

"Really?" He was quickly disappointed when the head of the bed only raised a few inches. The doctor gave a knowing smile.

"Thirty degrees is better than laying totally flat. A few more hours and you can be upright. Now, I have your test results to go over with you, so..." He turned and looked at the group crowded in the room.

Ducky started herding them out when Tim stopped him. "It's okay, they can stay. Everything you tell me, I'm going to be telling them, so they might as well hear it from you the first time." Pleased by the show of trust, the team settled around McGee's bed. Gibbs and Abby were on each side of his head, both with a hand on his shoulder, while Tony and Ziva each took a chair, resting their hands on his arms. Vance hovered behind Gibbs and Ducky stood behind Abby with his hands resting on her shoulders.

Norstrom hesitated for a split second, slightly intimidated by the honor guards surrounding his patient. "Well, all right, as you know, your EKG showed some changes and they were confirmed by the first echocardiogram. The second echo didn't give us enough information either."

"That's why you did the tests today?" Gibbs wasn't sure if knowing the testing wasn't just because of Vance's paranoia made him feel better or worse.

"Yes, short of cutting him open, these pictures we were able to take gave us the most information possible."

"And?" McGee didn't think Dr. Norstrom had been around Ducky long enough to pick up his habit of rambling, but he was beginning to wonder.

It wasn't often that a cardiologist got to deliver such good news. "The enlargement we were worried about on the back of your heart is actually increased muscle mass that's growing on top of the remaining scar tissue. Your heart is getting stronger, Agent McGee, so whatever you're doing, keep it up."

"Thank God."

"Great news, doc."

"Thank you so much."

"How wonderful."

"That's my Probie."

"When can I go back to work?"

Abby stopped just short of whacking his arm. "Not until the doctor tells you that you can."

"That was sort of the point of my asking, Abby." He turned back to the doctor. "How soon before I can fly?" The familiar banter relaxed everyone and even Dr. Norstrom had to chuckle.

"My understanding is that your new case is across the country?" When he received several affirmative answers, he laid down some rules. "Two days before you get on an airplane, and I want to check you over before you leave, and it better not be some cargo plane where you're wedged in between some crates. I'm only authorizing limited field duty. You can consult on the case, but don't go chasing any bad guys until the entry site is healed up. Also, I want you to have one more scan of your kidney. There's still some minor bleeding, so no heavy duties until there's been no blood in your urine for at least a week. Have it checked every 48 hours, I'll make arrangements with a hospital near where you'll be."

Vance had already made some plans. "DiNozzo and David, you two are going to fly out with Fornell and Mink as planned. Gibbs will work the case from this end until McGee gets the all clear and then they can join you. Dr. Mallard, you look over the autopsy results from the new victim and compare them to the earlier cases. If you feel that you need to, you can fly out with McGee and Gibbs. Any questions?" He really didn't expect any. "All right, get moving, people. We have a monster to catch."


	7. Chapter 7

**a/n - Gonna be swinging into high gear pretty soon, so get strapped in. The pieces are almost all in place.**

"Hey, Gibbs, where's McGee?" Abby shut the door with her hip as she came in the back door to dump a bag of groceries on the kitchen counter. She started to pull out the salad makings from the bag as Gibbs checked on the frozen lasagna in the oven.

"He's in the den, on the phone with his parents."

"Actually, I'm right here." Both Gibbs and Abby gave him a close look as Tim came into the kitchen. He had a slight limp, favoring the leg with the incision, and several bruises on his arms from the various IV's, but he seemed comfortable and relaxed considering the circumstances.

Gibbs had expected a much longer conversation about not only the invasive medical procedures, but the possibility of a copy cat and the return of Mink in his life. "That didn't take long. Your folks okay with all of this?"

"There's no point worrying them with a lot of details, I just let them know that I had my physical and it was fine and that I'll be away from DC for a while consulting on a case that has some similarities to mine."

"McGee..."

"Boss, they're leaving at the end of the week for two months in Greece. They've been saving and planning for this trip since Dad retired from the Navy." McGee sat at the table and accepted the glass of water Abby handed him. "They can't do anything except worry and that doesn't do anybody any good."

Gibbs didn't like the sounds of that. "They didn't ask about Mink?"

"Dad asked who was in charge of the case and I told him Fornell, which is the truth."

For someone who couldn't lie worth a damn, McGee was pretty good at redirecting. Gibbs narrowed his eyes as he studied the other man, trying to decide if McGee had ever used that skill on him. The oven timer saved them both from that conversation.

By the time dinner was done, McGee was visibly flagging and Abby started to set up the inflatable bed she had borrowed from a friend. Leaving the bathroom, Tim followed the sound of the electric pump and found her in the den, just as she was finishing. "Hey, McGee, the doctor said no stairs until tomorrow, so I thought this would be more comfortable than the sofa."

"Thanks, Abby." He was still in the sweats he wore home from the hospital and sat down to toe off his shoes. She joined him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Are you hungry, did you get enough to eat? I could fix you a snack before I leave." She reached out and touched the bandage on his arm covering where the IV port had been. "Do you need more to drink?"

"Abs, I'm fine." What he wasn't, was used to being fussed over so much, but he didn't want to hurt her feelings.

"I just keep seeing those pictures of you in the awful place. You looked like a survivor from Auschwitz. You didn't look like you." She squeezed his upper arm. "You were a prisoner, Timmy, a monster had you and we never knew. Why didn't we know?" Abby sat up and faced him, while Gibbs stopped in the doorway, arms full of blankets and pillows, to hear his reasons.

McGee hung his head. He'd known this conversation was coming the second he'd heard about Vance overreaction in the squad room. Finally, squaring his shoulders he looked at Abby and then over her head to Gibbs. "It took me a long time to get over what happened, but it was hard. By the time I got home my sister was a toddler. I missed so much and I was so scared for a long time. The world passed me by while I was locked away in that room, but eventually I caught up. I could go outside without being afraid, I could be around strangers."

"But?" She could see in his eyes that there was a lot more.

"Do you know what it's like to have people ask you why you're not dead? Mink was the worst. Like it was some big failure on my part that I didn't die. I couldn't really move past it because everyone that knew what happened couldn't let it go. It wasn't until I was in college that I got a chance to just be a normal person again. I wasn't a victim, I was just one of many overly smart, socially awkward freshmen at school." He shrugged as he looked up and gave Gibbs a slight smile. "Director Morrow knew, of course, but he agreed to give me time to prove myself, that what happened to me wasn't an issue. If it had caused me problems, I would have told you, Boss."

Although the circumstances were very different, Gibbs did understand hiding the past rather than face it every day. "I know that, McGee. Did Director Shepard know about it?"

Tim tilted his head slightly as he thought about it. "I always assumed so, but she never mentioned anything."

Gibbs came the rest of the way into the room, tossing half of the bedding onto McGee's temporary bed and the rest on the corner of the sofa. "Vance and I have discussed it, and we're going to wait until the task force is completely together before we have you give a detailed statement of everything you remember so you only have to go through it once."

"Thanks, Boss."

"However," he reached out and tapped the younger man on the back of the head so he knew to pay attention. "If you need to talk sooner, about any of this, you come to me. You got that?" When McGee nodded, he pointed to the pillow next to him. "You won't even have to yell, I'll be right here."

---NCIS---

_Please remain seated until the aircraft doors are opened. Thank you for flying American Airlines._

The doors were barely cracked open before Mink was up and pulling his bag out of the overhead compartment. Behind him, Ziva put on her best innocent face as she played with the paperclip still in her hand. "Was it something I said?"

Taking up the rear, Fornell kept the amusement out of his voice. "We're picking up two agency cars here in Los Angeles, then driving out to Barstow to get a briefing . That's the closest real city to the new crime scene that has motels.

"When in the hell is the kid coming? He's the key to all of this." Mink stumbled as Tony's bag slipped off his shoulder and bumped Mink.

"Oh gee, sorry, did I hit you? My bad."

Mink didn't say anything, but glared at other man as he stormed off the plane. Tony and Ziva bumped shoulders as they walked down the gate, Tony with a wide grin on his face while he repeated Ziva's earlier question. "Was it something I said?"

---NCIS---

Gibbs walked Abby out to her car. She twisted the keys in her hand as she stood next to her open door. "You... you're going to take good care of him, right Gibbs? Because, even if he says he's all right, that was a really, really awful thing to happen to anyone, especially someone who's as sweet as Timmy, and..."

"He'll be fine, Abs." He kissed her on the cheek. "Don't worry."

"But I don't trust that Mink guy. I don't think Timmy should be around him." Abby dug her heels in, not wanting to let McGee leave DC even as Gibbs got her into her car.

"Tony or I will be with him when he talks to Mink."

"You promise?"

"I promise." He stood and watched her until her car turned the corner. Once she was out of sight, he returned to the house. He automatically tucked the blankets around McGee's shoulders before stretching out on the nearby sofa, but sleep was a long time coming.

---NCIS---

Vance arrived in his office the next morning to find a note from Ducky requesting his presence in autopsy as soon as possible. He dropped his briefcase and overcoat on his chair and went to see what had the Medical Examiner so worked up.

"What do you have, Dr. Mallard?"

Ducky held a hand up, signaling the Director to wait as he stared intently at the pictures spread out on one of the autopsy tables. Vance thought about reminding the other man that he could use a computer to enlarge the image rather than the old fashioned magnifying glass he was using, but then one of the pictures caught his eye.

Finishing only a moment later, Ducky started to explain his findings, only to discover his audience wasn't paying attention. "Director Vance? Director Vance?" The second time his name was called, the other man finally looked up. Ducky studied him through narrowed eyes. "You found something?"

"Possibly, but you first, doctor."

"Very well. This boy's assailant was in too much of a hurry. There was very little abuse, his attacker went straight to murder."

Vance had to agree, it didn't fit the pattern. "Could he have been interrupted? If this was his first copycat murder, he could have panicked."

"That's very true, Director Vance, but answer me this. If the murderer washed the body using the Swedish pine tar soap that we know was Kehoe's signature, and then redressed him to dump the body, why was there a blood trail from the parking lot to where the body was found?"

That got Vance's attention. "He wanted the body found quickly."

"I believe so. It appears that he's more interested in being tied into the original case than he is in the actual thrill of the crime he's committed. Now, Director, what did you notice in the photographs?"

"The clothes he was wearing when he was found, are those what he was wearing when he disappeared?"

Ducky glanced at the files he had been sent. "No, they're not. How did you know?"

Vance leaned heavily on the metal table. "When Tim was kidnapped he was wearing jeans, white sneakers, a red and blue striped polo shirt and a baseball cap with the US Navy logo on it." He picked up the close up picture of the dead child and handed it to Ducky. The boy had been redressed in jeans, a red and blue striped polo shirt and white tennis shoes. Next to the body was a Navy cap.

"This murder was a message, but to whom?"

"I don't know, Dr. Mallard, but I'm going with them to find out."


	8. Chapter 8

**a/n - and so it begins...**

After a restless night at a local motel, the four members of the task force already in California arrived at the location where the body had been found. The entire area was still sealed off, forcing them to park almost a mile away and hike in. Tony wisely allowed Ziva to take the lead. If the two FBI agents disagreed, they were too busy trying to keep up to argue. They started where the body had been found and began working back towards the parking lot, following the blood trail. By the third blood smear, Ziva straightened and shook her head at Tony. "This is not the killer's path."

"What do you mean?" Fornell glared at the Israeli woman while Tony bent down to take a closer look at what she had discovered.

After looking for a moment, he held his hand over the mark to try and recreate the contact that had caused it. "We should have noticed this in the photos." Tony was kicking himself, feeling that they couldn't afford to miss anything if they were going to figure out exactly what was going on.

Fornell still hadn't grasped what he was looking at. Of course, the fact that his only view at the moment was the back of DiNozzo's head wasn't helping. "Noticed what?"

"We had no point of reference in the photographs, Tony. Now we do."

"Damn it, noticed what?" This time Fornell got their attention, but they waited for Mink, who was still trying to catch up.

Once they were all there, Tony turned to Fornell. "Pretend you're our suspect, you're carrying the body and you rest your bloody hand on that rock as you pass by." He tossed a glove to Fornell as he explained.

Fornell frowned, but did as DiNozzo asked. Once he had the glove on, he walked up to the waist high

rock and reached out. He immediately saw the problem. Unless he stood on his head, he couldn't twist his wrist around far enough to recreate the hand print they were looking at. He circled the rock, trying different angles until he eventually found one that would work. He was facing the opposite direction.

"The suspect was moving away from the dump site, not towards it."

Fornell might have been impressed with what they had found, but Mink wasn't. "So what? He dumped the body and returned to his car, big deal."

"The boy was not killed out here, and the blood trail leads away from the body, not in the direction he was carried. It makes no sense."

"She's right, Mink. It doesn't make sense." DiNozzo dismissed Mink and returned his attention to Fornell. "We know the blood wasn't on the body when it was moved, so where did it come from and why wait until he was headed back to the parking lot to mark his trail?"

Fornell was dividing his attention between DiNozzo and the stack of crime scene photos in his hand. "The blood trail is the straightest path possible between the parking area and where the body was left. Maybe he waited until he found the right spot to dump the body and then marked his trail back to his car."

"What, he carried a bag of blood with him?" Tony curled his lip as he thought about it. "That's kinda disturbing."

Ziva shook her head. "That is not important right now. We have wasted enough time on the path he wanted us to follow. We need to find the path he really took." Without waiting for confirmation from the task force leader, she started jogging back to where the body had been discovered, DiNozzo only a few steps behind.

Part way back, Tony slowed down, allowing Fornell to catch up with him. Fornell recognized the move and stepped it up, biting back a curse when he twisted his ankle. Behind him, Mink continued plodding along, making no attempt to keep up.

"What's the deal with Mink, Fornell? He was all hot to trot, trying to get his hands on McGee, but he sure doesn't seem all that interested in the latest victim."

Fornell looked over his shoulder at the red-faced, overweight, out of shape agent. "Probably can't breathe and think at the same time. We'll be lucky if we don't have to have him airlifted out of here before we're done."

"Do you trust him?"

"He's a fellow agent."

Tony wasn't taken in by the non-answer, but he let it go for now. Ahead of them, Ziva had reached the original site. With a teasing comment about 'Mossad Hunting Dog', he watched her as she made a large circle around the area, moving further out than the emergency personnel had been. It took almost an hour, but she found a trail further into the desert.

"We're not equipped to go cross country out here." Mink sat on a nearby rock and pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat off his face. "Mark the path and have search and rescue follow it."

They weren't equipped for a twenty mile hike across the desert, but they weren't totally without supplies. They each had two canteens and both NCIS agents had their ever present backpacks. Although he'd never admit it to DiNozzo, Mink's lack of interest bothered Fornell too. The path Officer David had found led along a dry creek bed. If it continued in the same direction, it would take them over the top of a slight hill about three miles away.

Fornell glanced down at his watch. "We'll work the trail for two hours. If we haven't found anything by then, we'll turn it over to search and rescue. David, you have the most experience at this; you take the point."

The further away from where the body had been left, the more obvious the trail became, as their suspect apparently was only cautious within the radius of a normal search pattern. Both Tony and Ziva filed that information away for later, in addition to the fact that Mink was falling further and further behind.

"Tony, do you see that?" Ziva stood at the top of the hill, shading her eyes as she looked down into the valley below. DiNozzo joined her, looking behind to see where Mink and Fornell were. Fornell was close enough that he'd heard Ziva's shout. Mink wasn't in sight, but he could hear the panting and swearing that meant he wasn't that far behind them. Satisfied, he turned his attention to what Ziva was pointing at.

"Is that a cabin?" DiNozzo squinted to better see the wooden structure almost hidden in the patch of scrub brush, the weathered wood blending into the surrounding naturescape. Off to the side, only partial walls remained of what was once an outhouse.

Ziva was already moving towards it, her hand poised near her holstered weapon. "I believe I would call it a shack, but I am not sure of the difference."

"Damn it, David, wait up." Fornell was limping, but trying to catch up with the two NCIS agents. Further behind him, Mink sat down again, but waved them on to continue without him.

Acknowledging Fornell, David and DiNozzo circled around the building in opposite directions. All the windows were boarded up, but there was a door at the back of the cabin. They conferred briefly, then Ziva stayed at the back door while Tony returned to the front. After briefing Fornell on the plan, Tony tossed a small rock up and over, to the far side of the roof. The signal sent, he counted to fifteen and then kicked in the front door. Only a half second later, Ziva burst through the back door. The two open doors gave enough light to show the one room shack was empty of life.

Remembering how Kehoe had hidden his victims, Ziva immediately started checking the floor for any signs of a trapdoor while DiNozzo began looking at the built in cabinets along the northern wall. Fornell moved to the table, immediately sorting through the piles of papers left behind by someone. All three of them, for now, ignoring Mink as he finally arrived now that any possible danger was past.

Mink watched from the doorway until Fornell yelled at him for blocking the light, then he sat on the cot set up in the corner.

"We haven't processed that for evidence. Are you an idiot?" DiNozzo grabbed his arm and pulled him up, but the damage was done.

Fornell cut him off before Mink could say anything. "Wait outside." Not fully trusting the man by that point, he escorted him out, using the opportunity to call for a forensics team.

Ziva's search of the floor brought her close to Tony. "I realize that he's FBI, but how could anyone be that much of an idiot?"

"He's no idiot, Ziva." Tony leaned over to better see out the door. Once he was convinced that the two men were occupied, he carefully removed a wadded up plastic bag from between the cot and the wall. Ziva pulled out an evidence bag from her backpack and they had it secured and hidden before Fornell came back in.

"Sorry about him. Mink hasn't been in the field for a long time. Anyways, I've got a forensics team coming in by helicopter. They should be here in about an hour."


	9. Chapter 9

**a/n - This chapter, and then I'm going to spend the weekend on Shattered Innocence. Thanks for all the wonderful comments. This is a case story, of course, but the underlying theme is the relationship between several of the team and how this affects them. Unfortunately, I can't spend as much time as I'd like on the entire team and what they're thinking. Not only would it make this a 100k word story before you know it, but it would take the focus away from the characters most deeply affected by the events of the story.**

Dr. Norstrom agreed that using a private plane more than made up for leaving a few hours ahead of schedule. Now they were flying in comfort in the SecNav's private plane. Gibbs draped his coat over the sleeping McGee and moved up to sit next to Vance.

"You've been pretty quiet since we left, and I still don't know why you're going with us. Directors usually don't go out in the field."

Vance looked back at the sleeping agent before pulling a picture out of his inside pocket. "Did you see this?" Gibbs gave it a quick glance, recognizing it as one of the crime scene photos.

"The new victim."

"The killer tracked down the exact clothes Tim was wearing when he was kidnapped and dressed the victim in them."

"My God."

"I don't want him to know, not yet. This is going to be hard enough on him anyways."

Gibbs shook his head. "I won't lie to him, Leon, and he's stronger than you think."

Behind them, sad green eyes opened, then deliberately closed.

---NCIS---

Tony glared at Fornell when the FBI forensic team pushed them out of the way, but he and Ziva casually moved further back, Ziva never letting go of her backpack. Tony tried his phone, but there was no signal and unfortunately he didn't have a satellite phone like Fornell had been issued when they arrived.

Fornell understood DiNozzo's anger. Mink's unfortunate contact with the cot more than likely destroyed any evidence that the bed had been used recently. Their only hope now was that the perp had left a semen sample somewhere on the dusty bedding. Considering how well scrubbed the victim's body had been, he wasn't holding out much hope. He had no intentions of hiking all the way back to the car, and he knew Mink would never make it. Since the other two members of the group didn't seem all that tired, the answer was obvious. He tossed the car keys to DiNozzo.

"Mink and I are going to ride back in the chopper. You guys take the car, and we'll catch up later."

Ziva started to argue, but Tony grabbed her arm and yelled, drowning her out as he caught the keys with his free hand. "No problem, Fornell. We're going to get some dinner while we're at it."

They were well out of earshot before Ziva pulled away from Tony. "Do you mind telling me what that was about? Do you trust them to process the evidence correctly?"

"Can't do anything about them. Let's concentrate on what we do have. We've got to get that to Abby in a hurry. There's a Marine base not too far from here, let's see if we can get that bag on a flight to DC." Tony wasn't thrilled with the long walk ahead of them. "Do you know where the car is from here?"

Ziva stopped and looked around, getting her bearings, as she remembered the map she had looked at earlier. She pointed towards the east. "The terrain is rougher, but the car is only about two miles that direction. Should we let Fornell know we are taking a different path back?"

"No, as long as Mink is with him, the less he knows, the... better." Tony came to a stop, staring off in the distance. Ziva joined him and immediately saw what he was looking at. A patch of dirt that had obviously been disturbed was visible off to the side. They approached cautiously, but no footprints remained in the sandy soil.

Ziva gave Tony a questioning look when he pulled on a fresh pair of gloves. "You are not going to let Fornell know what we have found?"

"We haven't found anything yet, Ziva. Besides, no service, remember?" He held up his phone to remind her. "We're too far away for him to hear us call out." To prove his point, he turned back in the direction of the cabin and spoke in a normal tone. "Fornell? Hey, Fornell, can you hear me?"

"If we find a nest of rattlesnake eggs I will never forgive you, Tony." The glare she gave him was only half-hearted as she donned her own gloves.

The soil was loose from being recently dug and they only had to go down less than a foot before they came to the top of a filled garbage bag, tied tight at the top. Tony groaned at the size of this bag. Unlike what they had found in the cabin, this could not be tucked into an evidence bag, and the more they handled it, the more potential evidence they could lose from the outside.

"Luckily, I was prepared for the wilderness."

Tony looked up at her just in time to catch a silver square before it hit him in the chest. He unfolded it to discover it was a space blanket. Lightweight, perfectly clean and virtually tear proof, it could be used to transport their find without compromising it. He grinned at her. "Aren't you glad I taught you everything I know?"

The grin was returned. "And you are glad I did not stop there."

---NCIS---

Once the technicians were busily working their way across the cabin, Fornell took Mink's arm and dragged him out the back door, not stopping until they were past the remains of the old outhouse. "What the hell was that all about? Don't you remember anything about working a crime scene?"

"Potential crime scene, Fornell, and I forgot, all right? I was tired and I sat down, so shoot me."

"Don't tempt me, Mink, and don't think I didn't smell that Bloody Mary you had for breakfast this morning. Next screw up and I'll send you back to DC in handcuffs. You got me?"

"I got you... Tobias."

---NCIS---

The co-pilot came back to the passenger compartment and bent over to whisper in Vance's ear. "Sir, we have an incoming message from Agent DiNozzo. Do you want to take it back here or in the cockpit?"

Vance looked over his shoulder at the two other men in the cabin. They looked like a matched set, both leaning back, both with their eyes closed. The only difference was the coat draped over McGee. Gibbs gave no indication he was aware until he started speaking. "Hey, McGee, how long have you been awake?"

"I never sleep on an airplane, you know that, Boss." Tim opened his eyes and sat up, the coat falling onto his lap. "I appreciate everyone trying to protect me, but I'm not a child anymore." He looked directly at Vance, "I will always be grateful for everything you did for me, sir, but it's time to let me stand up on my own and face this. If I can't handle it, then Kehoe and Mink and whatever freak is out there emulating Kehoe wins, so let's hear what they've found so far."

Vance groaned and turned back to the co-pilot. "You heard the man, we'll take it back here." A few moments later the images of Tim's partners appeared on the screen. DiNozzo was the first to react.

"Probie, hey, you're looking good. Of course, you should, since you're flying in style as opposed to us peons that got stuck flying coach with Agent Stink. I don't think the man's ever heard of a breath mint."

McGee laughed at that, and Vance tried to look stern. "I said the same thing to my director once upon a time and he threatened to have me permanently attached to the FBI." Tony looked panicked until Vance let him off the hook. "Luckily, your director has slightly selective hearing. Just don't push it where Stink... Fink... Mink can hear you."

"Of course not, sir." DiNozzo sounded like he was choking and Ziva instinctively slapped him on the back twice before slapping the back of his head.

"Thank you, Ziva."

"My pleasure, Gibbs."

Gibbs rolled his eyes at all of them. "Was there a reason for this video conference, DiNozzo, and where in the hell are you?"

DiNozzo gave his trademark grin, happy to have made McGee laugh even if it was at Mink's expense. "We are at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Barstow. Just sent a bunch of evidence to Abby."

"Why to Miss Sciuto and not to the FBI lab in Los Angeles?"

"Well, they sorta don't know about this evidence." With both Vance and Gibbs glaring at him, Tony quickly recapped the day's events.

Gibbs kept an eye on McGee, who had gotten quieter the more Tony explained their concerns about Mink. "Do you think he planted the evidence behind the cot?"

"I don't think so, Boss. There wasn't time; I grabbed him pretty fast."

"Could he have been trying to get to the evidence, or at least compromise it?"

Tony was afraid that McGee was at least partially right. "Well, he compromised any evidence on the bedding. I think the bag we found is safe. We didn't want to untangle it until Abby goes over it for prints, but it looked like a bag from one of those chain stores and I think there might be a receipt inside it. At least there was something in it that was paper."

"If that's what the clothes were in..."

"Clothes, sir?" Tony glanced over at Ziva, but she didn't seem to know either.

Vance took a deep breath and told them about the suspect redressing the body in different clothes and what they appeared to represent. Behind him, Tony could see McGee pale slightly, but he appeared to keep his focus.

"Just hang in there, McGee. We'll figure this out together."

"Thanks, Tony."


	10. Chapter 10

**a/n - Well, now that I'm done with Shattered, I'm back on this one. This is a short chapter, but it was the only place to break it. I'm going to try to blast this one out as quickly as possible, as I am, once again, fighting a deadline. Yeah, story of my life. I've got some other big stories in the works, too, so you'll never be rid of me. Enjoy.**

It was almost daybreak when the team was reunited at the motel in Barstow, after a long flight and a several hour layover for Vance to oversee an operation in New Orleans. Tony and Ziva seemed glad to have the rest of the team there, hoping that the presence of more agents from NCIS would tip the developing power struggle in their favor.

They were especially glad to see their friend, even if he looked ready to drop. "Hey, Buddy, didn't you sleep on the plane?"

"Indeed, McGee, you look like you have not slept since Tony and I left."

"I'm all right, guys. It was just a long flight and it was too hot in New Orleans to even try to sleep."

Gibbs wanted to take the attention off McGee, who was beginning to look overwhelmed. "Update, DiNozzo."

Tony watched McGee out of the corner of his eye as he reported. "The evidence should be with Abby in a few hours. We're going to the prison today to interview Kehoe and check his visitor log."

Gibbs nodded, it sounded like a good next step. Vance wanted more. "I want his cell searched while he's in the interrogation room."

"Yes, Sir, I've already notified the warden."

"Good job DiNozzo. Gibbs, you go with them. McGee, you're going to rest today." Vance looked around, neither of the two FBI agents were around.

Tim managed to not roll his eyes. "Who's turn is it to tuck me in?"

"I believe it is my turn." McGee blushed at the predatory gleam in Ziva's eye.

"Umm, guys..."

"Goodnight, McGee, have a good nap." DiNozzo managed to keep a straight face at Gibbs' comment as he picked up McGee's bag and guided him to the room, but it was a near thing.

---NCIS---

To Tobias Fornell, the worst part of having the rest of the NCIS team arrive was that it meant that he would have to share a room with Mink. He stood in front of the door to to room seven, waiting for Mink to let him in. If he'd be stuck sharing a room, he'd hoped to share with Gibbs. At least they were friends. Unfortunately, the small motel didn't have any extra rooms, so Director Vance would be rooming with Gibbs and he was stuck with Mink. Only Officer David would have a private room, being the only woman in the group. He knocked again as he watched DiNozzo steer an obviously exhausted McGee into the room they would be sharing. The third time he banged on the door, Mink finally opened it, nowhere near ready to leave.

Fornell glared at him and muscled past, dropping his suitcases on the unused bed. "Are you coming with us or not, Mink?"

"I'm not feeling so hot after that march through the desert yesterday, Fornell." To prove his point, Mink mopped at his sweaty face with a tissue before dropping it on the table and returning to the bathroom.

"Great, just great." Fornell picked up a magazine and used it to brush the used tissue into the trash before heading out the door.

Vance, Gibbs and DiNozzo were waiting in the parking lot for him. Vance was watching behind Fornell as he threaded his way through the cars. "Where's Mink?"

"Staying here, says he's sick."

Gibbs was immediately on the phone. "Ziva, Mink is staying behind. Make sure he doesn't bother McGee while we're gone."

_Can I shoot him?_

"Only if he causes a problem."

_Define problem._

"Play nice, Officer David." He closed the phone without listening to her objections. DiNozzo had been close enough to hear both sides of the conversation and was grinning at his boss. Vance narrowed his eyes as he watched them.

"Do I want to know?"

"No, Sir."

Vance continued to watch Gibbs. "I didn't think so." He lowered his voice and stepped closer to his two agents. "While you're at the prison, I'm going to rattle some cages and get some more details about what our old friend, Mink, has been up to all these years." He spoke up so Fornell could hear him too. "You'll be dropping me off at the Marine Base, I need to video conference with DC." If Fornell questioned his plans, he didn't say anything.

---NCIS---

"Umm, Ziva, I was kinda joking about tucking me in." McGee was a little surprised to come out of the cramped motel bathroom, in just his boxers, to find her sitting on the bed.

She smiled as she stood and folded the covers back. "I was not. Now, I have promised Gibbs that you would rest while they were gone." When McGee stayed in the bathroom doorway, she patted the bed. "In you go."

He detoured to pull a t-shirt out of his suitcase, still watching her every move.

"I do not bite, McGee. Agent Mink has chosen to stay in the motel instead of going to the prison with the others. I am under orders from Gibbs to protect you from him." She paced as she explained, and at the furthest point of her circuit around the room, McGee scooted under the covers and pulled them up.

"I'm pretty sure he's not going to climb in the window and attack me in my sleep, Ziva. I may not like the man, but he is on the same side of the law." Tim ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "I should just answer all of his questions and be done with it."

"And you will, McGee." Ziva sat on the other side of the bed and shifted around to lean against the headboard. "But when the rest of the team is here also. If Agent Mink disagrees, he may take it up with me."


	11. Chapter 11

**a/n - Thanks for the welcome back on this one. Things are really starting to heat up now.**

The FBI sedan was pulling out of the main gait of the Logistics Base when Fornell finally started asking questions. "What the Hell is going on? I don't appreciate being left out of the loop on my own task force, Gibbs. There are two other cars at the motel, why did we have to detour here for Vance?"

"You mean besides the rules that state a Director is suppose to have a protection detail when away from the agency on official business? You forgetting we buried our last director only months ago?" In the back seat, DiNozzo winced at the reminder, but remained silent.

Fornell wasn't convinced. "I know you're up to something. Is Vance going to just sit at the base until we get back? How come the guard at the gate knew DiNozzo?"

"Do you trust Mink?" Gibbs gave him a hard look.

"About as much as our ex-wife with my bank account. Damn it, talk to me, Gibbs"

Instead of answering, Gibbs turned to DiNozzo in the back seat. Fornell always hated the silent conversations the NCIS team seemed to understand. He guessed it was a positive talk, because DiNozzo started to tell him about what else had happened in the desert the day before.

After nearly running the car off the road, Fornell split his attention between the drive and watching DiNozzo in the back seat. "You're telling me that you don't know what was in either bag that you found?"

"We'll have to wait for Abby to tell us that."

"Our lab in Los Angeles is closer. We'd know by now, DiNozzo."

Gibbs broke into the conversation. "And so would Mink. Until the man starts helping instead of impeding the investigation, the less he knows, the better."

---NCIS---

"Bidwell."

"Director Vance." Harlan Bidwell's exhaustion was picked up by the video link as he took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "I have the information you wanted, but I'm not sure if it's going to do you any good."

"Let me be the judge of that." Vance knew the basics of Mink's activities over the years, his repeated attempts to intimidate Kehoe's young survivor, the multiple transfers, the worsening psychological evaluations. What he needed now were the details, the events in Mink's life and career that he didn't want anyone else to know about.

"You're treating the man like a suspect."

"Tell me this, Agent Bidwell, how did an agent on medical leave find out about the link to a twenty year old closed case before your field office here was even aware of it?"

"Shit." Bidwell dropped his head before nodded to someone off screen. Frustrated, he rubbed his eyes again. "I hope you're wrong about him, Leon, but I'm sending everything I have."

A fax machine behind Vance started spitting out papers. "I hope I'm wrong, too."

---NCIS---

Fornell looked over at Gibbs as they waited for Kehoe to be brought in. "Good cop, bad cop?"

"How about bad cop, worst cop?" Gibbs crushed the Styrofoam cup in his hand and tossed it in the garbage. He hated waiting, he especially hated waiting for a scumbag like Kehoe.

"Gibbs..."

"Damn it, Fornell. This animal should have been put down when they had the chance. Now we've got some copycat out there terrorizing people again and Kehoe is enjoying the show. The worst part of it is that my man is having to relive something that no child should have had to go through in the first place." Fornell didn't comment; he'd known the other man long enough to sense that he wasn't done. "The last copycat we had almost killed one of my agents because we had no choice but to play along with Boone. I'm not doing that again. Kehoe is not calling the shots this time."

---NCIS---

"Dr. Mallard, what do you have for me so far?" Vance crossed his arms and waited. The video link had been relayed down to autopsy, and the small videophone Ducky had did not have the capability of the main system. The Medical Examiner's voice was slightly distorted and didn't quite match up with the visual feed.

"Not much yet, I'm afraid. I have received complete copies of every autopsy file from the original case, and then latest body is being flown here, but until I have time to put together my own findings, it would be pure conjecture on my part."

"Understood, Dr. Mallard. I don't need to tell you how quickly we need answers."

"Of course, Director." He looked off to the side before returning his attention to the screen. "Perhaps Abigail has better news." Ducky stepped back to give Abby room in front of the small screen.

"Hi, Director Vance." Abby leaned into the videophone, causing her image to zoom unevenly on the large screen at the command center. Behind Vance, the technicians unconsciously leaned backwards as one six foot wide kohl-rimmed eye blinked at them. Even Vance was disorientated, but he locked his knees and refused to sway. Luckily, back in DC, Ducky tugged her backwards and her image pulled back into shape.

"Do you have something for me, Miss Sciuto?"

"I have fingerprints." She was joyful in her announcement. "I don't have an ID yet, but hug Tony and Ziva for me. It's almost impossible to get fingerprints off crumpled plastic after it's been uncrumpled because you can't get the fragments to fit back together, but they preserved the evidence perfectly. I'll start working on what was inside, next."

"Very good, I'll pass your thanks along."

"And the hugs?"

"I'll leave that for you, when they get back."

---NCIS---

After sending his attorney away, Kehoe was led into the small interrogation room by the guards. Much to Gibbs' disappointment, his cuffs and leg irons were bolted to the table, eliminating any chance he might start something. Kehoe smirked, recognizing the hatred in the cold blue eyes.

The years had been even less kind than they had been to Mink, Fornell noted. Kehoe was rail thin and pale, his skin almost translucent after decades in a cell. Arthritis twisted his fingers while nicotine stained the fingertips. Even now, the stub of an unfiltered cigarette was loosely held between his fingers. Fornell wasn't fooled, Kehoe had survived many fights in prison. He wasn't as weak as he looked. He was also more aware than some would give him credit for. With a mere glance, Fornell had been dismissed and all of Kehoe's attention was on Gibbs.

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs, I presume?"

---NCIS---

One thing DiNozzo learned during his time as Agent Afloat was how to toss a room. He and the guards made short work of Kehoe's cell. The more he found, the more he tore into every hiding spot he could think of. The last item, found slipped inside a loose section of the laminated wall shelf stopped him cold.

"Oh, my God."

---NCIS---

Both agents sat forward when Kehoe spoke. There was no way the man should know anything about Gibbs or NCIS. Kehoe seemed amused by Gibbs' reaction, and Fornell tried to shift Kehoe's attention off of him. "Raymond Kehoe, I'm Agent Fornell with the FBI and I have some questions for you."

"Nah, you don't. You're just killing time while Gibbs here has someone go through my cell. Isn't that right, Jethro. So which one is it?" He stopped to take a drag off the cigarette. "Don't think the Warden would like it if you sent your Jew-woman into the cells, so it must be the ex-cop. What was his name again?" Kehoe paused, as if he expected Gibbs to fill in the blanks for him. "Ah, yeah, I remember, DiNozzo."

Gibbs watched him closely. "What do you want, Kehoe?"

"You have my boy, Gibbs."

"That a fact?"

"Timmy and I have... unfinished business." Kehoe smiled and settled back in his chair as far as the chains would allow. "It's time we finished it."

"If you think you're going to get anywhere near him, you're sadly mistaken." Gibbs stood and leaned across the table, resting his weight on his fists. "If you try, it will be the last mistake you ever make."

"Is that a threat, Agent Gibbs?"

"It's a promise, Kehoe."

---NCIS---

"What did you find, DiNozzo?" The fact that it was Fornell asking and not Gibbs told Tony that something was very wrong, but out of habit he gave his report to Gibbs.

"You're not going to like this, Boss." He gestured at the table behind him. It was covered with newspaper clippings and photographs. "Somebody's been tracking McGee for him."

"Crap." That one word said it all for Gibbs as he looked over what DiNozzo had pulled from Kehoe's cell.

DiNozzo started pointing out the highlights. "The oldest newspaper article is from when he graduated high school. There's a review on Deep Six when it came out, and the most current picture," Tony pointed it out with a gloved hand, "is recent and was taken at the Navy Yard. He keeps the articles tucked in books, but the photos were rolled up and stuck inside the frame of the bed."

Fornell bent down to look at the curled photos. There was a dried substance on several of them that any man would recognize. "After all these years, he still gets his jollies over the kid."

"I don't want McGee to know about this." Gibbs was paler than Tony had ever seen him. Fornell shook his head as he turned towards Gibbs.

"He's got to know. Kehoe is gunning for him."

"Fornell's right, Boss."

"I am?" Fornell couldn't imagine DiNozzo siding with him over Gibbs. In answer, Tony held out the scrap of paper he'd found inside the shelf. It was a note from Kehoe to Gibbs and the team.

You can have my stash.

I'll have my boy back soon.

Fornell immediately turned to one of the guards. "He got all this from somebody on the outside. I want complete access to the logs. I want to know every visitor Kehoe's ever had, every phone call he's ever received. I want to know every lawyer he'd ever talked to and every doctor that's ever examined him. I want the same level of information about any inmate he's ever crossed paths with, and I want it all yesterday."

DiNozzo picked up the camera and started snapping photos of all the evidence laid out on the table. "Abby might be able to estimate dates on some of these pictures. If we can figure out when they were taken, maybe we can find some security footage that shows who's been stalking him."

"That's a hell of a reach."

Gibbs stared at the photos. "You got any better ideas, Fornell? DiNozzo, have Abby start with this one." He tapped the table next to one picture of Tim coming out of Abby's favorite bistro. "He and Abby had lunch together once a week when the team was split up. Let's see if she can remember when he wore that shirt before we show the evidence to McGee."

DiNozzo started bagging the evidence to send to Abby. "What do we tell Tim?"

"Only what we have to, and we're sure the hell not telling him about that bastard using pictures of him as his own personal porn stash. Let's get out of here so we can call Ziva. Until this is over, McGee is not to be alone for even a second."


	12. Chapter 12

**a/n - Finally! I've been trying to upload this chapter for two days. Thanks for your patience and comments. It was brought to my attention that a story was recently posted (like today) that uses quite a bit of details and dialogue from several chapters of my most recent finished story. Writers inspire each other, I understand that. If something I write makes you want to write, then great. I have two rules, and I think most authors here would agree with me. Make it yours, really yours. If somebody else sees the same dialogue, then it's not yours. Secondly, if a story inspires you, then acknowledge it. It's common courtesy and will go a long way in convincing people that you're not just stealing. - Em**

Leon Vance had just closed his phone after a strained call with McGee's father when it rang again. Groaning, he saw the display read 'Gibbs'. "Talk to me, Gibbs, does Kehoe know anything about the copycat?"

_Well, he knows all about me._

"What?"

_And he knows about DiNozzo and David, oh and Kehoe has a nice collection of photographs of Tim from high school right on through to a great shot of him aboard the Yard._

"How in the hell did he manage that?"

_Do you think I'd be bitchin' about it if I knew? We're an hour away, how close are you to the motel?_

"Getting ready to stash the jeeps now, the MP's will drop me off as soon as we get them secured and hidden. Thirty minutes, tops."

_Make it twenty, Leon. I got a bad feeling about this. Kehoe seems to think he'll have McGee as a personal playground any time now._

Vance glanced down at the display when he suddenly had a dial tone. He still wasn't used to Gibbs' brash method of ending a call, but it did get him moving as he yelled at the soldiers to speed it up. Gibbs wanted vehicles that could go across the desert, but he didn't want the FBI to know about them, and the Marine Corps was happy to oblige. His next step was to call DC. The phone at the other end only rang twice before it was answered.

_Abby's lab._

"Miss Sciuto, can you put a tracker on McGee phone?"

_Why, what happened? How could you lose him?_

"Miss Sciuto..."

_You guys were supposed to take care of him? Where's Gibbs, 'cause he promised me..._

"Miss Sciuto..."

_He promised me that he'd take care of Timmy because he's still recovering and..._

"Abby!"

_...Yes, Sir?_

For a split second she sounded like a little girl and he kicked himself for frightening her. "He's still safe, Abby, and we're going to keep him that way. I just want the added security of knowing you can track his location just in case. Now, can you do that?"

_Sure, that's easy, but the one I think you should be tracking is that Agent Mink. I don't trust him with Timmy, not one little bit._

"Actually, that is an excellent idea, Miss Sciuto."

_It is?_

"Set everything up and we'll call if we need to activate it. And, Miss Sciuto?

_Yes, Director?_

"When you talk to him, don't let Tim know about this. He's got enough on his mind right now."

---NCIS---

Ziva grabbed her phone the second it started to ring, muffling it in her hand as she ducked into the bathroom.

_Ziva, where are you?_

Tony's voice was so fast, he reminded her of Abby after too many Caf-Pows. "I am with McGee. I just stepped into the bathroom so the phone would not wake him up. You sound upset, what has happened?" Ziva poked around at the shaving kit Tony had left on the counter. He had quite an assortment of styling products, and she stashed the knowledge away for later.

_Grab the ice bucket and the room key and go down to the ice machine in the lobby._

"What? Why?" She grabbed the paper bucket even as she asked.

_You're not going to be able to keep your voice down when I tell you, and I do not want McGee to hear this right now._

"Tony, I am quite capable of keeping my voice down."

_Just do it, Ziva._

His hissed yell was enough of a shock, that she reacted instinctively, hooking her finger in the ring of the old-fashioned key. No other motel patrons dared to get ice as the ranting and raving Israeli woman paced in front of the machine for almost twenty minutes. Finally she started winding down enough to ask questions. "Does Gibbs have any idea who is Kehoe's source for the pictures? Does Kehoe know McGee is here?"

_Well, Gibbs hasn't shot anybody yet. _

"I might." She was distracted by what she saw across the parking lot.

_What?_

"Mink is trying to break into McGee's room. I believe I will... discourage... this kind of behavior, once and for all." Ziva pocketed her phone and pulled her sidearm in one fluid move as she chose a path that would keep her out of Mink's line of sight.

She stepped up in back of Mink and pressed her SIG Sauer against his head. "I would not do that anymore if I were you." He froze and then slowly lifted his hands off the door knob.

"You wouldn't shoot a fellow agent."

"You forget, I am not an agent. I am Mossad."

Reaching over Mink, Ziva used the key to open the door. Inside the room, McGee was still on the bed, but raised up on one elbow with his own service weapon in his other hand, aimed at the door. "Oh good, you are awake, McGee. Agent Mink and I will be outside having a little talk. Gibbs and the others will be back soon." She holstered her gun and pinned Mink's arm behind him before forcing him out across the parking lot.

A military transport cut across their path, stopping Ziva in her tracks. Vance climbed out, furious, after receiving a second phone call from Gibbs. "What in the hell is going on?"

"This woman is absolutely crazy, she..."

"Was following orders. Now, what in the hell did you think you were doing?" Vance was livid, making the MP's nervous as they stood next to the transport.

"What was I doing? I'll tell you, Director Vance." Mink glared at both of them as he made the title sound like it was something to be ashamed of. "I was doing my job. Maybe you've forgotten, but we're here to track down the scumbag that Kehoe is working with, and our biggest lead is hiding behind this woman."

"I'm not hiding behind anyone." All three of them turned to find McGee standing only a few feet behind them, dressed in jeans and an unbuttoned shirt over his t-shirt. "According to the local LEO's, Kehoe's old cabin is still sealed up. We'll get the keys from them in the morning and I'll show everyone exactly what happened, and how I... how I survived." Stumbling over his words, Tim turned and walked away. Ziva shoved Mink towards Vance and followed him silently.

Vance stepped closer to him, happily using his size to intimidate the other man. "You want to explain this to me? Let's try the real reason this time."

Mink glared at him, rubbing the arm that Ziva had twisted. "You really believe the kid is a total innocent in Kehoe's scheme? He must have done something to warrant being kept alive. Just because he's pretended to be normal all these years..."

"You've been keeping track of him? Even after the court order, you've been tracking him. Damn it, I should have you locked up right now." Vance started pacing back and forth.

"But you won't." Mink gave a bitter laugh. "Deep down, you're worried, you think he needs to be on a short leash."

"Actually, I think that if I give you enough rope, you'll hang yourself." Mink didn't answer him, just jumped in one of the sedans and drove out, kicking up dust and rocks, passing the rest of the team as they returned.

---NCIS---

"What in the hell is he up to, Vance?" Gibbs had barely cleared the car before he was yelling.

"He's been tracking McGee."

That stopped Gibbs' rant, but not his anger. Tony looked back and forth between the two men. "What do you mean, tracking him? Are you saying that he knew some scuttlebutt, or are you saying that he's been following him around? Because the chances of having two stalkers at the same time, probably isn't really high." Tony looked over at Gibbs and saw the same realization in his face.

Fornell had been quiet up to that point. "Wait a minute, I don't like the guy either, but if you are going to start accusing a member of this team, then you'd better have some hard evidence. His name wasn't on any of the lists we got from the prison."

"So, dig deeper." Vance handed DiNozzo the papers that had been faxed to him at the base. "Start here." When Tony left with the file, Vance pulled out his phone and dialed. He didn't bother with pleasantries. "I need a location on Mink, Miss Sciuto." He listened for a moment before hanging up.

"You're having my man tracked?"

"Under the circumstances, I think it's rather appropriate, Agent Fornell. Now, if you're interested, your man is at Sunny's Too Tavern."

Cursing, Fornell climbed back into the car they had just left. Gibbs would have gone with him, but Vance grabbed his arm. "Need you to do something else."

"What, Leon?"

"Tim's father wants to talk to you." At the surprised look, Vance sighed and explained. "He's worried. He understands that Tim is trying to protect his mother by not telling them the details, but it doesn't make it any easier."

"All right, I'll call him." Gibbs wasn't sure what he was going to tell the McGee's. If Tim wanted them kept in the dark, he would honor that, but he'd think of something.


	13. Chapter 13

**a/n - the family closes ranks as the plot thickens.**

"It is not a bad thing to have survived, McGee. Do not let Mink convince you otherwise." Ziva joined him at the window, watching the confrontation between Mink and Vance.

"Isn't it?"

She reached out and caught his arm, forcing him to turn away from the window and face her instead. "You are a good man, Timothy McGee. Do not allow Mink to cause you to second guess choices you made as a child."

"She's right, Probie." Tony set the files on the table before joining them at the window. "Don't start second guessing yourself now. Not because of Mink."

Tim shrugged, looking at his friends. "Even now, I don't know what I could have done differently, but..."

"Well, that should tell you something."

He wasn't convinced by her words. "Just because I haven't figured it out, doesn't mean that that I was right, Ziva. I guess that I'm just afraid that..."

"Gibbs would have known what to do." Tony knew he was right the second he looked at McGee's face, he'd have felt the same way. "You're not Gibbs, none of us are, and all we mere mortals can do is our best. You were a kid and you did your best." He rested his hands on Tim's shoulders and bent down to look at the downturned face. "No one can ask more than that, kid. Not even Gibbs, and sure as hell not Mink. Now, we need to figure out exactly what he's been doing all these years, you up to helping?"

"Yeah, sure, Tony. What do you have so far?"

---NCIS---

"Little early, isn't it?" Fornell sat next to Mink, opting for the coffee rather than the beer the waitress offered. Mink stared at the amber liquid swirling across the ice cubes in his glass.

"Never too early for good bourbon, you should know that, Tobias."

He ignored the comment. 'What the hell was that about, Larry? Do you want to get back in the agency or are you trying to get yourself thrown in jail?"

"It was worth it, the kid's finally going to tell us what really happened."

"We know what happened, from the statement he made in the hospital."

Mink just grunted as he took another sip, so Fornell tried another tactic.

"You seem to have recovered fairly well. I mean, you were pretty sick this morning, and now here you are, downing bourbon in the middle of the afternoon."

"Your point?"

Fornell had to hang on to his cup so he wouldn't be tempted to take a swing at the man. "Somebody's been feeding Kehoe information about McGee. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you? Because if you did, I'll let Gibbs have you."

"How many parents?"

"What?" Fornell was thrown by the change.

Mink set his drink down and turned to face Fornell. "How many parents have you had to face and tell them that their kid probably died at the hands of a pedophile?"

"Even one is too many, I understand that, but you guys managed to get one back still alive. You should cherish that victory, the rest of the task force did."

The other man didn't acknowledge Fornell's answer as he continued on. "You ever been on the other side of the conversation? You ever lose your own kid?"

"My God..."

"It's not over, Fornell. It'll never be over, and it's time little Timmy learned that." Mink picked up his glass and downed the last of his drink before he stormed off. Fornell closed his eyes as he thought about what Mink had just admitted. When he opened them, the waitress was standing in front of him.

"I'll take that bourbon now."

---NCIS---

Dinner was quiet that evening. Neither FBI agent joined the other five as they had pizza and soda in the room DiNozzo and McGee were staying in. By unspoken agreement, the connecting door to the room shared by the other men had been left open since Gibbs and Vance had returned. Needing privacy to make his phone call, Gibbs gathered up the empty boxes and took them out to the dumpster, before walking further out into the desert.

Gibbs settled on a flat rock, facing the motel in case any of his team or the FBI agents decided to join him. He dialed the number Vance had given him earlier and waited for the international call to go through. Being relayed through the switchboard at Headquarters was time consuming, but necessary. It was 0500 in Athens where McGee's parents were living in a rented home, but Captain Jason McGee was expecting the call.

"Captain McGee? This is Agent Gibbs." There was a lot of static on the line, but it didn't cover the worry.

_Agent Gibbs, how is Tim holding up? I can't believe he is having to go through this again._

"He's stronger than most of us realized, Sir. He's doing all right."

_Agent Gibbs, believe me, I am proud of my son for trying to protect us, especially his mother. His kidnapping almost killed her. _

"I can understand that, Sir."

_Don't get me wrong, Agent Gibbs, but I'm not sure you do understand. When you look at him, you see the adult agent you've always worked with. I still see that little boy laying in a hospital bed. You see, we had been convinced that Tim was dead and so I was deployed when he was found._

Gibbs knew, but it was still painful to hear. "That must have been very difficult."

_I wasn't there for my boy, Agent Gibbs. He needed me and I wasn't there. Now, he's facing it all again and again, I'm half way around the world from him._

"He won't have to face any of this alone, I give you my word, Sir."

_I appreciate that, Agent Gibbs, but I'm afraid that there's going to be a moment when what he needs is not the support of co-workers, but..._

As much as it pained him, Gibbs knew exactly what the other man was asking. "Captain McGee..."

_Jason, please. Sometimes I feel like we have joint custody of Tim, he talks about you so much._

Gibbs couldn't help but smile. "All right, Jason, and it's Jethro. I do understand because..." Gibbs took a deep breath, "because my wife and daughter died while I was stationed overseas." He could barely hear the answer and it wasn't because of the static.

_Oh, God, you do understand._

There was a moment of silence before Jason McGee's voice returned, slightly stronger.

_As one father to another, you'll take care of him for me?_

"Like he was my own, I give you my word."

---NCIS---

Tony kept a watch out the window of the motel room as he and Ziva teased McGee into turning in for the night. Hours of reading Mink's file had convinced them that the man was Kehoe's source, but they still had no proof. Now it was after midnight and Gibbs was still sitting out there. He'd put his phone away hours ago, but had made no move yet to come back inside. After the first hour he'd sent the man a text and watched him read it before putting his phone away.

Just as Tony was getting ready to go out there, Gibbs stood and started walking towards the motel. Brushing his teeth, Tony met him at the door between the two rooms. "You okay?"

"He asleep?"

"Yeah, he crashed pretty quick. Is it a good idea that he's going out to where he was held? He said that's the plan tomorrow." Tony didn't push his first question as he watched the other man. Vance also watched him as he reviewed the daily reports from the major field offices.

"He'll be fine, Tony. We'll take good care of him." Gibbs patted Tony's arm as he moved past him into the other room, stopping at the foot of the occupied bed.

McGee was asleep, but restless, the blanket half off the bed. Gibbs watched as he tossed, mumbling in his sleep. "Don't leave me, please don't leave me alone down here."

"Easy, son, easy. You're safe." Gibbs picked up the blanket and laid it back over the sleeping man.


	14. Chapter 14

**a/n - And so it begins. Lots of clues coming up in these next few chapters. **

It was a tense breakfast as the seven of them crowed around the two tables the waitresses had shoved together. Ziva and Tony flanked Tim as they sat, preventing Mink from getting next to their friend, while Gibbs and Vance had taken the seats across from him. Fornell quickly dropped into the chair next to Gibbs, leaving the only open seat next to Ziva, who gave a calculated smile to Mink as he sat.

Still remembering the feel of the gun pressed against his head, Mink wisely remained quiet as he watched the others fuss over McGee. The only eye contact he had with any of them was when the waitress asked for drink orders. Fornell glared at him until he ordered coffee instead of the much wanted Bloody Mary.

Coffee was the order all around, Gibbs adding a glass of orange juice as he pointed at McGee. The younger man blushed slightly, but obediently drank the juice under the approving watch of his team. In such a public setting, the only mention of the case was a discussion of transportation. The two FBI agents would take one car, while the NCIS team would divide up in two additional cars. Ziva wasn't thrilled to be driving Director Vance, but she knew better than to argue with Gibbs.

Peggy, the waitress, arrived with a tray filled with assorted plates, watching in amusement as the only woman in the group placed her side order of fresh fruit in front of the pale young man next to her. The quick-witted man that had been flirting with her earlier did the same with his side order of bacon. The baby faced young man they were feeding just rolled his eyes as he smiled, while three of the four older man looked on in amusement. Peggy glared at the fourth man. He was rude and a lousy tipper, and she didn't feel bad at all when she accidentally slopped coffee onto the edge of his plate.

---NCIS---

"Good morning, my dear." Ducky strolled into the lab, carrying the Caf-Pow Gibbs had instructed him to deliver every day. He found her almost in tears as she prepared to run DNA samples, the latest delivery from the west coast scattered on the tables around her. "What on Earth is wrong?"

Instead of answering right away, Abby held out a picture of McGee. He was laughing at someone off camera, a carefree expression on his face. Ducky quickly donned a pair of gloves and took the photo. She had moistened the dried splatter to remove a sample and the odor was unmistakable. "That monster had pictures of Timmy, Duckman. Current pictures, somebody is following McGee around and taking pictures of him and then somehow Kehoe is getting them."

She started pacing, waving her arms as Ducky tried to calm her down. "We're going to find out who's doing this, and in the meantime, he's in good hands with Jethro and the team."

"And Mink."

"Yes, well," Ducky paused, clearing his throat before telling her about the early call he'd had from Fornell. "We're to look at him a little more closely. Agent Fornell found out last night that he may have had a child the FBI knew nothing about. He hopes that knowing what happened to the boy may explain his obsession with Timothy."

Abby pulled off her gloves and threw them in the trash. "It might explain it, but nothing will ever justify what he's been doing to Timmy. What if he's the one that's been giving all this stuff to Kehoe?"

"We're going to help them find out." Ducky escorted her to her computer station. "Let's get started, my dear."

---NCIS---

Three cars pulled up in front of an abandoned homestead northeast of Barstow. After two hours of rough dirt roads, all seven of them were glad to get out and stretch their legs. The barn had been sacrificed to the elements many years ago, and only one wall remained upright, the rest pulled down by the weight of the collapsed roof. The house was in better condition, but the shiny padlock on the front door was still in contrast to the weathered wood. Vandals had left the place alone, driven off by both the boarded up windows and the knowledge of what had happened behind the barriers.

McGee climbed out of the back seat and rested his crossed arms on the roof of the car, staring at what had been his prison for almost two years. Tony stayed close, a digital audio recorder tucked into his shirt pocket to capture every painful memory Tim recalled. With any luck, he would never have to give another statement. Gibbs watched him from the other side of the car. "Does it look different, McGee?"

He shook his head. "I never saw the outside, Boss. I was unconscious when he brought me here, and I was too weak to open my eyes when they brought me out."

"You were still conscious?" At the time Vance had assumed Tim lost consciousness right after Joe touched him.

Tim had a far away look in his eyes. "Yeah, I remember hearing all of you talking. Agent Bidwell thought it would have been kinder if I had died, and you..." He smiled slightly as he turned to face Vance directly. "You promised me that I'd be alright."

Vance nodded and returned the smile before turning to the heavy duty lock. Dust and grit made it difficult for the tumblers to fall into place. Off to the side, Mink looked at anything but the two of them. By then everyone knew that Mink's badgering of Tim had begun that afternoon, as he was being carried out to the ambulance.

As Vance worked the lock, Fornell and Gibbs pulled out a portable generator from the back of one of the cars. It took just a few minutes to get it tied into the house and fired up, lighting up the inside just as the door swung open.

After they all filed in, Tim took the lead, Gibbs right at his elbow, Tony a step behind, as he walked through the rooms, telling the few fragments he remembered.

"I woke up on the bed." Tim stood in the doorway to the bedroom, staring at the bare mattress. "He'd taken off my clothes and had me dressed in this old-fashioned nightshirt. There were dried bloodstains on it. My wrists..." He stumbled in his recollections as he rubbed his lower arms. "...my wrists were tied to the headboard, and he was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching me."

"That night was the first time he molested you?" Gibbs hated this. He hated to see Tim relive these memories, he hated being the one to ask such painful questions, but most of all he hated having Mink standing there, listening.

"My grandfather lived with us when I was little." This was certainly not the answer Gibbs was expecting, but he stayed quiet and let Tim tell it in his own time. "He'd been a POW, did you know that?"

It was a rhetorical question, so they waited, even Vance, who probably knew more about Tim's experience than anyone else. "Grandpa used to tell me stories about being in the camps and how they'd try to trick you into giving up information. Just give us the cypher for the code and you can have hot food and sleep in a real bed, they'd tell him. He knew, though... he knew it was a trick. Once he told, he'd be dead, and he'd be taking hundreds of other sailors to the grave with him if the enemy could decipher the code."

They still didn't understand the connection, but they waited as McGee stepped further into the room. He didn't stop until he was standing next to the bed. "Kehoe told me I could go home, that all I had to do was..."

"Was what, Tim?"

McGee didn't seem to have heard Gibbs' question as he turned to Vance. "He still claims he wasn't a rapist, doesn't he?" Vance nodded, Kehoe had claimed the children that he'd abused were with him willingly. It was one of the many mysteries of the case and the monster. From Vance, Tim's gaze traveled the room. Mink was the most excited, finally getting the answers he'd waited years for, while Fornell's face showed embarrassment and shame at Mink's behavior. The rest of the men were watching him, confused, but supportive. Only Ziva seemed to be putting the pieces together, her knowledge of interrogation techniques combined with an understanding of the depravity of mankind gave her a unique perspective.

Ziva never took her eyes off McGee as she stepped in front of Mink, blocking him partially from Tim's view. It seemed to help as he gave her a shaky smile before returning his attention to Gibbs. "In his twisted mind, it was a seduction. The beatings and the isolation and the starvation, it... it was like some sick form of foreplay for him. If I willingly submitted to him, he said he'd let me go home, but I knew... Boss, I knew."

"What did you know, Tim?" The pieces were falling into place for Gibbs, as horrifying as they were.

"He was lying, just like in the POW camps. He wasn't going to let me leave. He never let any of us leave, at least not alive."

Fornell had been listening quietly, putting the puzzle together like the rest of them, and thought he understood. "It was a game to him, wasn't it? It was all about the hunt, about gaining the submission, but the final act never could satisfy him. He'd lose interest and dispose of them afterward."

"Your grandfather made it out of the prison camp because he never broke and you survived the same way." Tony reached out and gently squeezed Tim's arm. "You beat him at his own game."

"No, I just outlasted him."

---NCIS---

"Hey Ducky, Fornell was right, Mink did have a kid." Abby stared at the files she had put up on the lab's plasma as Ducky and Palmer came up behind her. Ducky moved closer and raised his glasses to read the fine printing through the bottom of his bifocals.

"The boy wasn't one of Kehoe's victims, was he?"

Abby shook her head as she pulled up another file. "Nope, but he did vanish on his way home from school and has never been found."

"I'm probably wrong," Palmer looked back and forth between Ducky and Abby. "But wouldn't it be against protocol to let the father of a missing child work a case so similar to his son's?" Ducky nodded encouragingly, Jimmy was beginning to notice more and more, a trait necessary in their line of work.

Abby filled in the blanks for both of them. "Mink and his wife divorced before he joined the FBI and her new husband adopted the boy."

"Most unusual, Mink would have had to give up all parental rights." Abby and Jimmy listened as Ducky thought out loud. "He may have felt massive guilt after the son he abandoned later vanished. If none of his current friends or coworkers were even aware of the boy's existence, he would have internalized his pain and grief."

"He hates McGee for surviving?" Palmer still didn't understand.

"Yes, but he hates himself even more for failing his own son when he helped save Timothy. Unfortunately, something is still driving that hatred, and until we know what that is..."

"Timmy will never be free of him."

"I am afraid you are right, Abigail."


	15. Chapter 15

**a/n - Thanks for all the wonderful comments and reviews. Oh, look - is that a cliff ahead?**

They stood in a circle around the trapdoor Vance had just pulled up, watching McGee stare down into the narrow opening. His voice was tinged with panic as he stepped back. "We need flashlights before we go down there."

Fornell looked down at the brightly lit room. "It's okay, kid, the lights are already on."

"Here you go, McGee." Ziva pressed a small mag-light into his hand and wrapped his fingers around it, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "It must have been very dark down there when he would shut off the lights. Did that happen very often?"

"I... I don't know. It was hard to tell... there was no way to tell how much time had passed. Most of the time the lights were on, but when he was mad and turned them off, it was like being blind."

"Tim, you don't have to do this." As Gibbs spoke, Tony braced himself, ready to take on Mink if he objected. McGee made the challenge unnecessary.

"Thanks, Boss, but I do, otherwise, Kehoe wins. After all this time, I'm not going to let that happen."

Gibbs made no attempt to cover his pride as he tapped McGee on the back of the head. "He didn't win, don't ever forget that. Now, Fornell and I are going down first, you won't be alone." After another pat, reassuring himself more than McGee, Gibbs eased down the wooden ladder followed closely by Fornell.

Neither man could fully straighten as they looked around the small underground bunker. Six narrow cots lined one wall, all of them soiled, some of them bloodied. The faint smell of death still lingered in the musty air, overlaid with human waste and filth. The two men exchanged troubled looks before Gibbs turned back to the flimsy ladder and steadied McGee as he came down. He was followed closely by Ziva with Tony only a few steps behind. Mink was the next one down, with Vance bringing up the rear. Only Ziva was able to stand straight, but she instinctively stooped to keep her hair from brushing against the cobweb covered ceiling.

Fornell was still trying to put together what he now knew about Kehoe's behavior and match it up to the physical evidence. "Did his victims die down here, or did he keep the bodies down here until he dumped them?"

Tim shook his head. "No, once you gave in, you were gone. Nobody ever came back down. It was one of the others that died down here with me."

"Others? What others? Tell me about the others." Mink made to grab at Tim, but a solid wall of protective agents stood in his path and from behind Fornell latched onto him and pulled him back. He continued to struggle and yell. "I knew it, I knew you were hiding something, kid." A final, vicious yank by Fornell stopped his rant as he continued to stare at McGee.

Tim knew his knowledge wasn't enough to satisfy the obsessed man. "I don't know. Sometimes a kid would be dumped down here with us. We weren't allowed to talk to them, and we all got fed more when they were here, but it was never very long."

Mink pulled away from Fornell but didn't make another attempt to get at McGee. "I was right, Kehoe was involved in human trafficking. This was a stop in the route." Vance was listening to Mink, but watching McGee.

"Tim?" Vance reached out and rested a hand on McGee's shoulder. "Looking back, is it possible that's what was going on?"

His eyes scanned the room, but everyone knew what he was seeing was many years past. "It fits, they were never Kehoe's type and he wasn't interested in them, not like... well, you know."

"Yeah, we know." Tony touched McGee's other shoulder. "Is there anything about the other kids that you can remember? What about any other adults that were here?"

"Most of it's just a blur. You got trained real quick to not look up when the door opened." Tony glanced at Gibbs while Tim spoke. He saw the anger he was also feeling as they imagined how their young friend had been trained. Focused, they both almost missed it when Tim started speaking again. "I really only remember the last boy. He was sick and Kehoe told me it was my job to take care of him, but he wouldn't let him have his medicine."

"Do you know what was wrong with him?"

Tim shook his head at his boss. "No, but if I had to guess I'd say he was diabetic. His medicine had to be injected, but he wouldn't trust us with a syringe."

"What happened?"

Instead of answering, Tim pulled away and moved to stand between the last two cots in the row, staring at one of them. "This was my bed, he had the next one over. Tim looked up at his teammates before looking down at the last bed. "It wasn't that long before he wouldn't wake up. I'd give him some water and rub his throat to make him swallow like I remembered Mama doing with a sick puppy, but I didn't know what else to do. The next time I woke up, he was dead."

"There was nothing else you could do." Gibbs looked up at Mink, challenging him to disagree, but for once the other man was smart enough to stay silent.

Tim was still staring at the bed. "I was so scared of what would happen when Kehoe found out I couldn't keep him alive." He finally looked up. "I was so scared, Boss."

It was all Gibbs could do to keep his voice steady. "How did you keep him from finding out?" Around them, the group stilled, waiting for the answer. Tim moved to the foot of his old bed and pulled it, moving it away from the wall. As they continued to watch, he knelt down at the newly exposed wall and pulled away a small section of the wooden paneling that made up the wall.

"This was my secret. Grandpa told me about hiding food in the camps, so that you'd have something to eat when you were being punished. I hid his food in here. It probably sounds awful, but it couldn't help him anymore and..."

"That is how you stayed alive, is it not?" Ziva joined him on the floor, not crowding him, but in his line of sight. "You were a prisoner, just as much as your grandfather had been. How long before Kehoe discovered he was dead?"

"At first it was easy, I just moved the blanket around. Then, after the rigor was gone, I moved his arm a few times. Kehoe believed he was asleep. He was getting antsy, like he would before he'd hunt, so he didn't pay that close of attention."

"Because the kid wasn't his toy?" Vance followed Gibbs' lead and struggled to keep his voice even.

Tim didn't seem to have heard the question, rocking slightly as the memories began to overwhelm him. "It got harder when the maggots... I had to keep brushing them off... but then it got too bad, and his body was too bloated, and the smell..."

Gibbs dropped to one knee behind Tim. "Easy, easy, it's okay. You're safe." Slowly, as to not startle him, Gibbs eased his arms around Tim's shoulders and pulled him back away from the wall. He couldn't help but remember every crime scene with a decomposing body and McGee's struggle with each one, something he saw mirrored on the faces of the rest of the team as Tony stood frozen behind Ziva.

Fornell felt like he was intruding, but someone needed to finish it. "McGee, what happened when Kehoe discovered he was dead?" Tim didn't answer, but his shivering visibly increased. "Did he beat you?"

A pause, then a nod.

"Did he molest you?"

Tim straightened and turned, pulling away from Gibbs. "Of course not, I'm still alive."

He thought so, but had to be sure. "That's the reason for Kehoe's obsession, you're the one that got away."

"What about the boys he kidnapped after you? Didn't you tell them what would happen?" Mink had been quiet up until now.

"Of course I did." McGee rarely showed anger, but his team was glad to see his anger now, fleeting as it was. He slumped back onto the floor. "One of them didn't believe me; he just wanted to go home."

After a moment, Gibbs prodded him. "And the other?"

"He believed me, but... after a while he didn't care. He just wanted it over."

---NCIS---

Abby's eyes never left the screen of her computer as she reached for her phone. "Ducky, I found something I think you're going to need to see for yourself." She was still holding the phone when Ducky and Palmer came into the lab.

She was quite a bit taller than the elderly doctor, but when Abby was seated, it was easy for him to look over her shoulder. He looked up at the plasma several times, always returning to the monitor on the desk. "Have you double-checked your results?"

"Triple-checked them, there's no possibility of error."

Palmer summed it up for them. "This is bad, this is really bad. How could the FBI miss something like this?"


	16. Chapter 16

**a/n - Thank you all for your wonderful comments and reviews, they are very much appreciated and enjoyed. Brace yourself, things are going to get knocked into high gear at the end of this chapter.**

Hot desert air had never smelled as sweet as when they climbed out of the bunker and staggered outside. Ignoring the rest of them, Tony steered Tim to their sedan and sat him sideways on the passenger seat. Tim didn't argue, his feet scuffing in the dirt as he sat down. Ziva arrived with a bottle of water and a granola bar from her backpack and handed them to Tony as he squatted outside the car door.

"How ya' doing, McGee?" Tony loosened the lid before handing the water to Tim. He didn't get an answer right away, so he stayed put, resting his hands on Tim's knees.

Tim downed a third of the bottle before he handed it back. "I'm okay, Tony."

"You sure? What about your leg, is the incision bothering you at all?"

"Just a little sore."

Vance came up behind Ziva and Tony. "Define sore."

"He probably should not have been climbing up and down that ladder." Ziva tutted at the three men. "It is time for McGee to rest his leg and drink more water."

"Ziva, I'm fine." It was an effort, but Tim managed to not roll his eyes. Not even his parents fussed this much.

Gibbs' arrival stopped any argument that might have started. "If he's not, we'll know soon enough. McGee, your check up is this afternoon. Ducky has it all set up with the base hospital at Twentynine Palms. Tony, you drive him."

There was something in the older man's expression that worried Tony. "Sure, Boss, when do we need to leave?"

"Now, DiNozzo."

McGee looked back and forth between the senior agent and their team leader. "Boss?"

"Go with Tony, Tim." Gibbs reached down and ruffled Tim's hair. "He'll take care of you."

"Umm..."

"Legs in, Probie." Tony stood, helping Tim to swing his legs into the car before closing the door. He gave Gibbs a look that clearly said 'tell me later' before walking around to the driver's side.

Once the car was out of sight, Gibbs turned to the rest of the group, including Fornell and Mink, who were staying back out of the way. He managed to hide how worried Abby's phone call had made him. "Abby has something for us, we need to go to the Logistics Base for a video link." It was a tense drive back to Barstow in both cars as the members of the task force worried, for various reason, about what Abby had found.

---NCIS---

The appointment had taken less time than the drive to the base, but it was long enough to worry both Tony and the doctor. Much to Tim's dismay, Tony insisted that he sit and rest while Tony pulled the car up to the entrance. "Oh, come on Tony, it's not that bad."

"Not that bad?" Tony stopped in the doorway and turned around. "He threatened to put you back in the hospital. The incision is inflamed and your kidney is bleeding more. You heard him, you're going back to the motel and rest, so stay put while I get the car."

Tim watched Tony jog across the parking lot before returning his attention back to the app he had pulled up on his phone; he was right, it was only a short detour, one he was determined they would make.

Tony parked as close as he could to the door without jumping the curb. "You stretch out in the backseat, and I'll have you back to the motel in no time."

'I'd rather sit up front." Without giving Tony a chance to argue, Tim eased himself into the passenger's seat and started programming the GPS. "Besides, I have a stop I need to make."

"No, no, no, Gibbs is gonna kill me. What's so important that you need to do it now?" Tony looked at the screen of the GPS and bit back a groan. "A cemetery? Haven't you had enough about death today?" One look at the determined set of McGee's jaw, and Tony knew they would be making that stop. "Well, at least we'll be in the right spot for when Gibbs kills me."

---NCIS---

"What have you got, Abs?" The fact that she was standing quietly in front of the camera set off alarms in Gibbs' mind. Abby was looking at all the faces behind him.

"Where's McGee?"

The delay didn't ease Gibbs' worry. "Having his check-up, DiNozzo drove him. Now, Abby, what did you find?"

"I finally got a match on the fingerprint I pulled from the plastic bag Tony found stuffed between the wall and the cot in the cabin the copycat used. His name is Kevin Doyle and he's a registered sex offender in Nevada. He was sentenced to two years probation because he exposing himself to some children."

Fornell was pleased with the details of the identity. "He's crossed state lines, so it's definitely a federal case." Fornell glanced at the rest of the team. "Do we know his connection with Kehoe?"

"The name is not on the list of visitors he had at the prison." Ziva was scrolling through her lists. "Kehoe receives hundreds of letters a month, we will have to wait until we return to the motel to check his name against the correspondence list."

On the large screen Abby was chewing on her lip and shaking her head. "Don't bother, I know the connection, and it's really hinky. I mean really, really hinky. Hinky as in why didn't the FBI know about it. Hinky as in..."

"Abby!" Vance was glad to see that he wasn't the only one that had to yell sometimes to get her attention. When she stopped and stared at Gibbs, he nudged her in the right direction. "The connection?"

"Okay, there was no DNA left on the body or recovered anywhere at the cabin, or on any of the evidence Tony and Ziva found, but Doyle's DNA is in the registry."

"What good does that do us, Miss Sciuto?"

"That's where it gets hinky, Director. I have a DNA sample from Kehoe, and..."

Mink shook his head. "That's impossible. He's been in prison since before we started using DNA. His DNA has never been added to the sex offender registry."

"He left samples on the pictures he had of Timmy, so now he's in the system, Agent Mink." Abby glared at him as she continued to explain. It's a really big jump from flashing to murder, so I ran Doyle's DNA against any other unsolved crimes. It didn't match up to anything, but since I was processing Kehoe's DNA at the same time, my computer automatically compared the two DNA patterns. There's a ninety-nine point seven percent probability that they are first generation male relatives."

"What?" Fornell was horrified at what she had discovered, but even more revolted by the fact that Mink didn't seem surprised at the news. "You're saying that Doyle is Kehoe's son?"

"Yeah, so why didn't the FBI know about him?"

Vance, too, had seen Mink's reaction. "Apparently, some of them did."

Abby wasn't done yet. "Guess what else I found on those pictures of McGee." She was staring at Mink as she spoke. Seeing that, the rest of the team surrounding Mink turned to face him as she continued. "Agent Mink, would you like to tell the class why your fingerprints are on the pictures of McGee that Kehoe had hidden in his cell?"

---NCIS---

Tony insisted that he be the one to walk into the florist to buy a bouquet of flowers. Tim's only request was that they be tied with a yellow ribbon. Once at the cemetery office, Tony held back, giving Tim the privacy he seemed to need as he located the graves he wanted to visit. It wasn't until they were back in the car that he broached the subject. "Who are we visiting?"

"One of the graves is my grandfather's. The other, well, it's kind of hard to explain."

"There's only one bouquet."

Tim leaned his head against the door frame as he shrugged. "I know. The other grave... it wouldn't be right to leave flowers." He closed his eyes, effectively ending the conversation.

Tony was curious, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to know the answers as he parked and followed McGee up the path from the parking area. Tim walked to the end of the path and then carefully veered through the silent stone markers to two matching headstones near a large pine tree. Concerned, Tony supported Tim as he knelt to place the flowers at the base of the tombstone, before moving back a few steps. Silently, Tim traced the name carved into the granite.

Lt. Edward T. McGee, USN

Beloved Husband, Father & Grandfather

May 14, 1921 – Dec. 29, 1987

A quick calculation told Tony that Edward had not lived long enough to see his grandson's rescue. Expecting to see a marker for Tim's grandmother, Tony turned his attention to the matching tombstone. Instead, he found a familiar name, one he hoped to never see on a grave.

Timothy McGee

Beloved Son & Grandson

1978 - 1987

DiNozzo was so distracted by seeing his teammate's grave that he almost missed the groan as Tim tried to stand. He scrambled and managed to catch Tim's arm before he stumbled. Tony supported him as they walked to a near-by bench.

"I'm okay, Tony, my leg just stiffened up." Tim stared at his grandfather's grave before turning his attention to his own grave. Tony tried to understand.

"How can you stand to look at your own grave? You survived, don't you want to take a sledgehammer to that tombstone?"

Tim shook his head as he struggled to explain. "The boy I was didn't survive, not really. You don't know what it was like afterward."

"So, tell me." Tim was leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees, so Tony laid his hand on Tim's back, gently rubbing the tense muscles.

"Everything I knew was gone. Grandpa was dead. My family had moved to a different base and I had a sister I'd never met that was already a toddler. Other than a few mementos my mother packed away, everything I owned had been given away. I had no friends left. While I was locked away, the world had moved on and I didn't have a clue how to catch up and I was scared, scared of everything. I still wonder what kind of person I would have been if this hadn't happened to me."

"God, Tim, I can't imagine."

"The worst part... the worst part was that my dad was on a ship in the South Pacific."

Tony kept rubbing, working his hand up to Tim's neck to give a reassuring squeeze. "The Navy brought him home, right ?"

"Yeah, but..."

"But not soon enough?"

"I just remember all those agents and state troopers being in that basement, and then the medical team arriving and they were all talking about me, and they were trying not to touch me."

"They were worried it would frighten you."

Tim nodded. It was drilled into the heads of every law enforcement officer in the country to not panic an assault victim by unexpectedly touching them. "All I wanted was for my dad to be there and wrap his arms around me and tell me that it was going to be okay."

---NCIS---

"Guard, guard?"

"What is it, Kehoe?" Frank Thomas turned at the call, not happy to be dealing with the notorious child murderer. He was near the end of a double shift, and all he wanted was to go home. When he turned, he saw Kehoe leaning against the metal bars, clutching his chest, as he slowly slid down onto the floor. Thomas grabbed his radio to call for assistance. "I've got a man down in cell block C West. Need a medical team." So focused on the protocol required for a medical emergency, he didn't notice the smile on Kehoe's face.


	17. Chapter 17

**a/n - A large chapter, but you would have killed me if I'd broken it up. You may kill me anyways. Thanks for all the great comments, you make my day.**

Mink wasn't handcuffed for the trip back to the motel, but he probably would have been more comfortable if he had. Gibbs driving would have scared him sober if he'd been drinking, but it was better than having the furious NCIS agent in the back seat with him, Fornell's fury was bad enough. The second car with Vance and Ziva was right on Gibbs' bumper and they pulled into the parking spaces at almost the same exact moment.

Once inside the motel room Fornell shoved him into a chair. Ziva started removing everything from his pockets. When Mink tried to object, Vance had him by the throat before any of the others could react. "You've caused that boy enough pain, and I'm done playing nice. Now, you're going to cooperate, or I'm gonna let her loose on you, and when she's done, it'll be Gibbs' turn."

Fornell shook his head as he stepped back. "Don't look at me, I'd just as soon let them have you. You knew about Doyle, so have you been withholding evidence in a capital crime? What else have you done?"

"Doyle knew exactly what the scale of a standard search grid was. Were you the source of that information?" Ziva was tearing apart his wallet as she grilled him, quickly finding the secret pocket and the fake ID hidden inside. The records Vance had gotten from the FBI told her what she had found. She handed it to Fornell. "A false identity he used in an undercover operation. The name is a regular visitor at the prison and sends regular correspondence."

Up until this point, Gibbs had been strangely quiet, but now he eased up to Mink, the others instinctively falling back to give him room. The phone call he'd had with Abby while setting up the video link had given him more details than any of the rest of the team knew, and he was ready to play his hand. Gibbs leaned close, his lips less than an inch from Mink's ear. "I know about your son, Tommy, so tell me what kind of a deal you made with Kehoe, and where my agent fits into your plans."

---NCIS---

Sighing and rubbing his face, McGee straightened from his bent over position on the bench. Tony withdrew his hand, but stayed close. "You don't have to tell me, but why is your headstone still here? I mean, don't you find it kinda creepy?"

Tim stared at his hands. "It was my choice to keep it up. My funeral was in early November." Tony still wasn't used to these jumps in the conversation, but he had learned to wait. He quickly realized that Tim's grandfather died less than two months after Tim's funeral. Eventually, McGee started talking again. "Grandpa was a war hero, he should have been buried in Arlington, but his last wish was to be buried here, next to my grave so that when my remains were recovered, he'd be here to look after me."

Tony really didn't know what to say, so he settled for laying his hand on Tim's arm. "God, Probie..."

"His last act in life was to make sure he would be here for me, waiting for me. To take that away from him just seemed wrong, somehow." Tim looked at Tony's hand on his arm before looking up at his friend. "I'm sorry, I'm probably not explaining this very well."

"No, I get it. He was pretty special to you, wasn't he?"

Tim nodded, a faraway look on his face as he remembered back to a time before he'd ever heard of Kehoe. "Whenever Dad was at sea, Grandpa would step in. He was the one that taught me how to ride a bike, how to throw a curve ball, how to make an explosive from what was in the kitchen..." He laughed and shook his head. "Mom never knew about that one."

Tony couldn't help but return the laugh and the smile. "He sounds like he was a great guy."

"Yeah, he was." Tim was smiling openly even though his eyes were moist. "You'd have liked him, Tony, he had the best stories."

"After we get home, I'd like to hear them, but for now, I think it's time to get you back to the motel so you can rest." Tony stood and offered a hand up to McGee. Tim let himself be pulled up, unable to hide his exhaustion any longer.

"Okay, but I need to stop at the office again before we leave the grounds. They apparently have a new stoneworker that can remove the dates from the headstone without damaging the rest of it"

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm used to it and my parents understand, but I can see where it would make you guys uncomfortable."

"Thanks, man." Tony stood still as Tim started back down towards the car. When Tim turned back with a questioning look on his face, Tony just waved him on. "I'll catch up with you in a minute."

Tony waited until McGee was out of earshot before he knelt down next to the grave, straightening the flowers Tim had left there. "Hey, Gramps, thanks for teaching him what he needed to know to survive. I know you're here so you can look out for him, but we're going to keep him alive and with us for as long as we can. I hope you don't mind waiting, but he's our family, too." Tony pulled one bud out of the bouquet as he stood, carrying it with him to the other headstone to lay it down. Once that was done, he held his hand over the dates and stared at the name. "Not until you're old and gray, Buddy. I'm gonna make sure of that."

---NCIS---

"Start talking, Larry, and make it good." Fornell stood in back of Gibbs as he leaned into Mink's space. Fornell wouldn't let there be bloodshed, at least not yet, but he would let his old friend have a great deal of leeway in intimidating Mink.

Larry Mink looked up at Fornell as he spoke and saw the anger. It may not have been the burning hatred he saw in the NCIS agents, but it was enough that he knew no help was coming from there. The kid always managed to get people to feel sorry for him, and Fornell had joined the bandwagon. His last hope was to make them understand how important this was. "The kid confirmed it. Kehoe's place was a stop pedophiles used when they were transporting children across the country. Kehoe's hidden a coded book that gives the location of every stop along the way and every pervert involved."

Vance wasn't convinced. "You're taking him at his word? Have you even seen this so-called book?"

"He gave me the cypher to break the code, but without the book it's useless."

"The information in his book, even if it's real, is over twenty years old."

"Come on, Tobias, you know a tiger can't change its stripes. Some of them are dead by now, but how many of them are still out there? How many kids are still being hurt? How many parents are still waiting for answers?"

"What does any of this have to do with McGee?" Ziva paced back and forth behind the men surrounding Mink. She wondered idly if they were deliberately protecting him from her, she found it an amusing prospect. If Ziva David wanted to get her hands on Mink, it would take more than Fornell, Gibbs and the Director to stop her.

As if sensing her thoughts, Gibbs moved back even as he spoke. "You son of a bitch, you were giving him the pictures of McGee to try and get the location of the book. Did you set up this last murder just to get your hands on McGee?"

"No." The defiance was back. "I got an anonymous tip about the case."

Fornell had had enough. "Local LEO's are after Doyle. As soon as he's in custody, we'll know exactly how dirty you are. No matter what, though, you're done with the agency. I'm shipping you back to DC in the morning and the Director can decide what to do with you." He looked up and saw the third sedan pull into the parking lot. Fornell had a lot more he wanted to rip into Mink about, but the further he kept the man away from McGee, the better it would be for everyone. The first step would be to get him out of Gibbs' and Vance's room before the kid saw him through the open connecting door. "Go back to the room, and if you're smart, you won't poke your head out until it's time to go to the airport."

"What about dinner?"

"You'll survive." Just to be safe, Fornell watched from the open door until Mink was in their room at the end of the row. He turned to find Gibbs in his face.

"I want that bastard watched, Fornell, I don't trust him anywhere near McGee."

Fornell wasn't surprised. "Don't worry, I'll sit on him myself, tonight, but first I need to apologize to McGee on behalf of the Bureau." He had more he wanted to say, but Tim and Tony were walking up to the door.

"Having a party and forget to invite us?" Tony kept his voice light, but it didn't mask the worry in his eyes. "Are we missing somebody?"

While the others were watching McGee drop into the nearest chair, Ziva covered for them. "Agent Mink has already retired for the evening and it looks like perhaps you should do that as well."

Ignoring the hint, Fornell pulled a chair close and sat down next to Tim before explaining what had happened since he and Tony had left Kehoe's cabin that morning. Tim was as white as a sheet by the time he finished.

"He tried to have me removed from school and placed in his custody when I was twelve. Just how far was he willing to go? McGee gave a bitter laugh as he looked up at the ceiling. "Was he figuring that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few – or the one?"

"Ah, Probie, Star Trek?" DiNozzo tried for a joke to lighten the mood, but it fell flat. Fornell rubbed his forehead as he tried to soothe the situation.

"Agent McGee... Tim, I understand how difficult..."

"Nothing personal, Agent Fornell, but until you've spent most of your life being followed around by somebody who's trading off scraps of your life to some pervert so he could find more perverts, don't try to claim that you understand how I feel." Suddenly needing to wash the dust of the basement off, Tim stood and rushed for the connecting door into the other room. If Fornell wanted to continue the conversation, he had a solid barricade of NCIS to get through.

"He's had enough today, Fornell." There was something in Tony's voice that caught their attention.

"Did something else happen?"

"Where should I start, Boss?" Tony started pacing as he picked up steam. "Let's see, the incision in his leg, you know, the one that goes right into his femoral artery? Well, it's inflamed now and he's got more blood in his urine than before, and oh yes, we stopped to visit his grandfather's grave which, incidentally, is right next to Tim's grave. Thanks for the heads up on that one, Leon."

Gibbs caught his arm as he circled past. "What do you mean, Tim's grave?" There was a thud in the bathroom of the other room, and they all froze.

"You okay in there, Probie?" There was no answer, but the shower turned on just a moment later. Vance groaned and rubbed his cheeks in frustration.

"Damn it, I thought his parents had that removed. You're saying his knows about his grave?"

Tony was on the move again, scrubbing his fingers through his hair as he lapped the room, dodging the other occupants. "Oh yeah, he knows about it. It was his decision to leave it there." He spun around to face Gibbs, his voice rising, trying to explain what he still didn't quite understand. "Grandpa wanted to be buried there so he could wait for Tim's remains to be found. He's still waiting."

"Tony..."

He could hear the reproving tone in Gibbs' voice, and if he were honest with himself, Tony couldn't explain why the grave had freaked him out so much, why the thought of Tim dying before he'd ever met him chilled his heart, how much it still shook him to have been separated from his team for all those months. "Hey, at least he agreed to have his date of death removed."

"Tony..."

DiNozzo just shook his head and pulled away, crossing into the adjoining room. "He shouldn't be taking too long of a shower. The skin around that incision needs to be protected." He tapped on the bathroom door, hoping it was loud enough to be heard in the shower without startling his friend. "McGee? Hey, Probie, you almost done?"

Fornell used the distraction to slip out the door to start his self-appointed babysitting duty.

---NCIS---

McGee closed the bathroom door behind him and leaned heavily against the vanity counter, willing himself to stop shaking. He wanted a shower, but in his rush for privacy, he hadn't stopped for anything clean or even his shaving kit. At least Tony's was still in here, he was sure his friend wouldn't begrudge him the use of the shower gel and shampoo under the circumstances. He reached up to close the frosted glass window before stripping off his clothes and came face to face with a stranger.

Before he could draw his weapon in the small room or take a breath to yell, the thin man had reached through the open window with both hands. One grabbed his shirt while the other hand pressed a sweet smelling cloth hard against his face. The shaving kit fell to the floor as his attacker was boosted through the window, and in his last conscious moments Tim thought he heard Tony call out to him.

Doyle froze when he heard one of the agents call out, but then he reached up and turned the water on in the shower. The old pipes in the motel screeched as the water rushed through them, drowning out any sounds of struggle that might have been heard. He waited for a few seconds and then hoisted McGee up to the window. From the other side Mink reached in and grabbed the unconscious man and between the two of them they had him outside and loaded into the back of a battered Dodge Dart in a matter of moments.

---NCIS---

Fornell arrived in the room he was sharing with Mink to find it empty. "Damn it, Larry, don't make it worse on yourself than it already is." He stormed back towards Gibbs' room, expecting to find a confrontation in the works. Halfway there he stopped as something about the three cars caught his eye. They were too low, and when he dropped to his knees to take a better look, he saw that all the tires had been slashed, leaving them stranded.

---NCIS---

Tony rapped on the door harder, then started to bang on it. One thing McGee wasn't was deaf, and alarms were going off in DiNozzo's head. "Tim? Tim!" Ziva elbowed him aside and had the lock picked in seconds, but the room was empty, the shower still running. They could smell the chloroform without touching the rag still on the floor, and a few threads matching McGee's shirt were snagged on the window latch.

Fornell burst through the room door. "Mink's gone and all the tires have been slashed on the cars, we're stranded."

"He's kidnapped McGee." Gibbs pulled out his phone to call Abby, hoping that she was still in her lab and that Mink stayed close enough to a cell tower to be tracked.

Ziva climbed up onto the sink to look out the window. The sprinklers had been on at some point, allowing footprints to be seen in the still damp dirt.

"Two sets of footprints and a set of drag marks. He had help." She jumped down, not mentioning the blood smear she had seen. The only accomplice she could think of would be Doyle, and if that was the case, then the scrapes he had suffered would be the least of McGee's problems.

The four remaining NCIS agents rushed past Fornell and to the cars. He started to remind them that they only had three spare tires, but they were pulling extra gear out of the cars, not the spares. DiNozzo was the first to be loaded up. "How close are the Jeeps, Director?"

"What Jeeps?"

"Half mile, due North." Vance tossed a survival pack at Fornell, answering his own phone instead of explaining the Marine Corps Jeeps he'd had stashed in case something went wrong. His strangled curse stopped the group in their tracks. Vance closed his eyes as he squeezed his phone shut and didn't open them as he repeated the message. "Kehoe was sent to the hospital earlier today after apparently faking a heart attack. He escaped from the hospital prison ward sometime tonight."

Gibbs looked like he wanted to shoot someone as he turned to Fornell. "He's going to trade McGee to Kehoe for the book."


	18. Chapter 18

**a/n - Okay, I am so thoroughly pissed right now. There's another plagiarist posting here on . One of the award winning writers from our writer's group has a WIP called Snowblind that she started posting back in January. Some hack calling herself thegeekandthegoth cut and pasted the first three chapters so far and posted it under the title Iced. She even had the gall to leave a review for the original author to please hurry up and post more of the story. Apparently so that she could steal the rest of it. Creeps like her make me want to pull every story I have off and to see her getting glowing reviews is just wrong, so very wrong. If you'd like to give her your own opinion, be my guest.**

**Well, I'll get off my soapbox now, I actually write my stories myself and spend a lot of effort doing so. I appreciate every review I get, so thank you.**

**Update: Apparently she didn't like the attention, and has pulled the story (big surprise), you guys rock!! BTW, she changed her profile name, so if you're interested in keeping track of what else she steals, she now calls herself TimothyMcGeeEqualsBoss. I haven't read her other stories, but I did notice that one of them has a title that violates the user agreement we all have with - ie - no vulger words in the titles.**

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A full out run had the five remaining members of the task force at the hidden Jeeps within minutes, but had Fornell seriously doubting his fitness for field work. As he wheezed, bent over, hands on his knees, Tony and Vance pulled the camouflage netting off the two vehicles. Gibbs was still on the phone with Abby, and Ziva was programming the information from the DC lab into two hand held GPS units. She looked up, fear in her eyes for her friend. "They've separated, he must have made the trade with Kehoe already."

Vance was already swinging into the driver's seat of one of the large off-road vehicles. "Fornell and I will go after Mink. You three save McGee." Fornell waited long enough to catch the tossed GPS before scrambling after Vance. He was barely in the passenger's seat before Vance had them moving.

In the second Jeep, Ziva called out directions and Tony hung on for dear life as Gibbs quickly pushed through the gears, revving the engine as they cut through the rapidly dimming evening light.

_We will find you, McGee._

_Hang on, Probie, we're coming._

_Keep fighting, son._

---NCIS---

Mink drove through the countryside silently, watching for any sign of pursuit. They were twenty miles out of town before he pulled over and put the car in park. Doyle looked over in surprise.

"This isn't the rendezvous spot."

"Nope, but it's the end of the line for you." Before Doyle could comprehend what was happening, Mink reached over him and opened the passenger door. A quick shove and Doyle found himself on the ground.

"What are you doing?"

Mink shot him right between the eyes. "Making sure there's one less pervert in the world." He climbed out of his seat and moved to the back seat where McGee was starting to regain consciousness.

"Why are you doing this?" Tim struggled to focus, trying to move his arms. He could still feel his gun at his side, digging into his ribs, but Mink grabbed his arms before he could reach for it.

"Sorry, kid." Pinning Tim's arms over his head, Mink reached down and retrieved his gun, tossing it into the bushes. The cell phone was the next thing to go, followed by the badge clipped to his belt. When Tim felt hands unbuckling his belt, he fought back wildly, his limbs still uncoordinated from the chloroform.

"Noooo..."

A hard slap across the face almost sent him back into oblivion, but he continued to struggle as he felt his jeans being tugged down. A needle punctured his skin through his boxers and Tim could feel himself being dragged back down again. "Why?"

"Nothing personal kid, besides, I'll kill Kehoe as soon as I get my hands on that book." He would have said more, but the sedative had won and McGee was out again. He continued to strip the younger man down, leaving him in just his boxers and socks before handcuffing his wrists together. Mink would have turned him to pull his hands to the back before applying the cuffs, but he was winded from the struggle. Still gasping for breath, Mink turned the car around to head for the real rendezvous with Raymond Kehoe.

The pile of clothing tossed alongside the road caught the attention of a stray dog, the remaining body heat and human scent reminding her of a time when she lived inside. She latched onto the pants with her teeth to drag it back to her puppies, having no interest in the phone caught in the tangle of fabric.

---NCIS---

It was a tense group that flew down the dirt road, Ziva counting off the distance as they approached the signal from McGee's phone. There had been only random movement for the last ten minutes, but none of them were willing to vocalize just what that meant.

When Ziva cried out for him to stop, Gibbs locked the brakes on the off-road vehicle, fighting to keep it out of the ditch as it came to a standstill. She pointed out the direction as they climbed out of the Jeep, but something caught Gibbs eye on the opposite side.

"Got a body." The long hair told him instantly it wasn't McGee as he climbed down into the ditch to take a better look. Tony and Ziva rushed around the back of the Jeep to join Gibbs, sighing in relief when they, too, saw that it wasn't their friend. Ziva pulled up the picture Abby had sent of Doyle earlier and held her phone up to compare. Tony glanced at the image before returning his attention to the body.

"Guess Mink didn't need him anymore."

Gibbs gave the barest grunt to acknowledge DiNozzo's statement. "Locals can deal with the body. Spread out, see what you can find." Ziva didn't even take the time to acknowledge him as she set across the uneven ground, watching the signal on the GPS.

"Boss?" Gibbs looked up at the sound of his name. Tony was standing about ten feet in front of the Jeep. He held out his hand to show the shiny metal in a leather wallet. "McGee's badge." As he moved towards DiNozzo, something caught his eye in a nearby bush. Gibbs bent down and retrieved McGee's SIG Sauer, still in its holster. The two men exchanged a sorrowful look as Tim's situation looked bleaker with every passing moment.

"I've got something, Gibbs." Ziva was moving faster now and they ran to meet up with her. "McGee's clothes." She stepped over one of his shoes to pick up the shirt laying in the sandy dirt. The rip from being dragged through the bathroom window was evident as was the bloodstain next to the tear. Faint drag marks were visible and they followed them, calling out for McGee.

Tony dialed McGee's cell phone and they followed the sound, finding the phone right outside an animal den. Ziva dropped down to lay flat on the ground to shine a flashlight into the small opening before pulling a pair of jeans out of the hole. She checked through the pockets. "These are McGee's jeans. His keys and wallet are still in the pockets." She absently patted the head that poked out of the den. "Mink must still have McGee."

Since Tony still had his phone in his hand he dialed Fornell as Ziva gathered up McGee's clothes. "Come on, come on, Fornell, answer your damn phone." By the time the call went to voice mail, they were back in the Jeep and rushing to catch up with Vance and Fornell, and hopefully, Mink and McGee.


	19. Chapter 19

**a/n - You guys are the best. The stolen story has been removed and both the original author and I thank you.**

**And now on with the story, it's another cliffhanger, but we are getting close to the end. Thank you for your support, your comments and your readership.**

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The rope was the last touch he needed and it was in the trunk of the car, so Mink stopped a mile short of the rendezvous point to get it and tie it firmly to the cuffs holding Tim's wrists together. The kid's breathing was shallow, but it would all be over soon. He checked his gun one last time before starting the car again.

The meeting place was the site of a partially constructed factory, abandoned when the owners filed for bankruptcy. It was full of places a person could hide, but Kehoe was standing in the open when Mink pulled in.

Mink stood, using the door to shield himself. "I'm here, now where's the book? Hand it over."

"You got my boy?" A slow grin spread on Kehoe's face and he palmed his groin as Mink grabbed the rope and dragged Tim's semi-conscious form out of the backseat to drop onto the ground.

To prove he was serious, Mink rested his foot on Tim's chest and pulled his gun, pointing it at his head. "Give me the book or you'll be playing with a corpse."

Kehoe faltered for a second. "You're bluffing, you wouldn't dare."

"Try me." Mink pulled the hammer back and tightened his grip on the weapon. Below him, McGee's eyes partially opened as he fought to stay awake even if the rest of his body refused his commands.

"Okay, okay." Kehoe walked backwards, never taking his eyes off Mink until he reached the shell of a building. Crouching down and still watching Mink, he felt along the crumbling wall until he found the loose section of plaster. Pulling it up, he wrapped his fingers around the stapled pages he'd tormented Mink with for years. His other hand crept into his pocket and came up with a lighter.

Kehoe stood, flicking the lighter at the same time. By the time he was fully upright, the flame danced along the edge of the handmade book. "Throw the gun over here." When Mink hesitated, he brought the lighter even closer. "Try me."

Mink's shoulders dropped, all bravado gone as he eased the hammer carefully back down, looking Tim in the eye. "I'm sorry, kid." He tossed the gun towards Kehoe, watching as it skittered across the dirt to stop only feet from the other man.

Smiling as he stepped over the gun, Kehoe eased closer to Mink as Mink stepped over McGee, eager to get his hands on the book. Kehoe watched as each step brought Mink closer to the book and less aware of his surroundings, so focused as he was on the conclusion of his twenty year hunt.

The flame flickered and danced, just skimming the edges of the paper, causing them to glow and smoke. Unwilling to let it go up in flames after such a long hunt, Mink lunged. Kehoe dropped both the book and the lighter and latched onto Mink's wrist as Mink grabbed the book. The now former agent didn't notice when Kehoe's other hand slipped under his jacket and came out with a hunting knife, not until the cold steel punctured his chest.

Kehoe laughed as he twisted the blade, watching Mink's impossible struggle for air. "I win." One last jerk upwards on the knife and Mink fell to his knees as Kehoe retraced his steps and retrieved the tossed weapon. It only took a few moments before Mink lost the fight to stay upright and he fell to his side, watching as Kehoe returned to grab the rope and pull Tim close. Barely able to breathe, he could only mouth 'I'm sorry' over and over as the young man was dragged out of his sight.

---NCIS---

The sun was almost past the horizon, silhouetting the building in the distance. The simple fact that the tracker on Mink's phone headed them towards the buildings gave an urgency to the situation. Whatever was going to happen, the old factory would make great cover and be impossible to two men to search in the dark.

Vance mashed down on the accelerator as they rounded the last curve and left the main road. A bulky figure stood next to a mid-sized car. "Is that Mink?"

Fornell's phone vibrated at his hip and he grabbed it as he squinted, trying to see who was standing there. Once the headlights illuminated him, Fornell could tell it was not Mink, but Kehoe with a body draped over one shoulder. Kehoe's free arm was raised, and before Fornell or Vance could react there was a muzzle flash and the front tire of their Jeep exploded. Fornell's last thought as the Jeep rolled over and over was that he really should have been faster answering his phone.

---NCIS---

Laying on the ground, his cuffed hands above his head, Tim could only see out of one partially open eye, the left side of his face pressed against his raised arm. He blinked, trying to focus on the form standing over him. A foot on his chest rolled him further onto his back and he was looking up into the barrel of an old school federally issued Smith and Wesson revolver. He was pretty sure it was Mink holding the gun, but he couldn't force himself to look past the gaping hole of the barrel only inches from his face. The drugs were taking over again and he started to fade back out until he heard the familiar sounds as the spring on the hammer stretched and the gun prepared to fire. He couldn't move, couldn't take a deep breath as he watched the cylinder roll into place. Time seemed to stand still, words danced around him as the blood roared in his ears.

_I'm sorry, guys, I know you tried._

Without warning, the pressure on his chest eased and the gun barrel moved to the side as the hammer was carefully eased back down. Mink's face came into focus for a split second before he stepped over Tim and disappeared into the darkness.

Tim concentrated on breathing deeply, trying to clear the cobwebs. He could feel most of his body now, but still couldn't move his arms or legs. Grunting, he managed to partially roll his head to the side in time to see Mink fall next to him. As Tim stared, trying to comprehend what had happened to him, Mink's bloodstained lips moved but Tim couldn't hear the words. He was moving again as Kehoe grabbed the rope.

Rocks dug into Tim's back as he realized how naked he was. He could move his fingers now, but that couldn't defend him as Kehoe picked him up like a sack of potatoes. He was upright through no movement of his own for a split second before a hard shoulder slammed into his gut and he was hanging upside down.

Rough hands stroked the inside of his thighs before they jerked away with a curse before a shot was fired. He didn't know where the gun had come from, but it fired close enough that he could smell the burning powder. He heard the roar of an engine before a crash and Kehoe laughed. "That takes care of them. Come on, baby boy, let's go someplace private to play."

_Gibbs? Tony? Ziva?_

_Please tell me that wasn't you._

_Please._


	20. Chapter 20

**a/n - Getting close to the end, the final section should probably be divided into two parts, so two chapters after this one. I've got several chapters of my next story done, and it's going to be another wild one, as will be the one after that, which is being roughed out right now. Thank you all for your wonderful reviews and comments.**

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"Gibbs..."

"I see it."

The other Jeep was laying on its roof about twenty feet from the roadway. Once they turned off the road, their headlights illuminated a figure trying to pry one of the doors open. Gibbs pulled as close as he could; Tony and Ziva scrambling out before he had it fully stopped.

"Fornell, man, you okay?"

"Do I look okay, DiNozzo?" Fornell was holding his right arm stiffly against his body and the right side of his face was bruised and bloodied. "The Director's still unconscious."

Gibbs joined them, dropping to his knees to help Ziva with Vance. "What the hell happened?" Fornell staggered against Tony as he rubbed his eyes, trying to remember.

"We followed Mink's signal from his phone and..." He straightened up as the memories fell into place. "It was Kehoe. He had the kid in a fireman's carry and he opened fire on us when we arrived. McGee, he's got McGee." Even knowing deep down that Kehoe was long gone with the young man, Fornell spun around, looking frantically for any clue. What he saw was a body laying only a few feet from a battered old car. Pointing, Fornell called out. "Found Mink."

Vance was coming around, but Gibbs was going to need help getting him free of the wreckage. "Ziva, check on Mink, DiNozzo, give me a hand."

The two team members changed places and Ziva was followed by Fornell to where Mink lay. He was on his side, eyes still open, a knife buried to the hilt in his chest.

Fornell tugged the book out of his hand. "Damn fool, what was he thinking?"

"He was not thinking, that is the problem." Ziva bent closer to examine the body with a flashlight. "The knife penetrated the diaphragm, paralyzing it. He probably suffocated to death before he bled out."

Back at the overturned Jeep, Vance shook off the offered help as soon as he was pulled free. "We were so close, Gibbs, so close. Where would he take him?"

"He wouldn't have to take him anywhere." Tony looked around at the abandoned complex. "They could be anywhere in there and it would take us hours to search it all. By then..."

"I'm not letting that happen, DiNozzo. I am not losing Tim to that animal." Gibbs paced, his gut churning as he thought through everything they knew about Kehoe.

Vance watched him, knowing that infamous gut was the best shot Tim had. "Where would Kehoe go to..." He stumbled over the words, not willing to vocalize what McGee would be facing.

"Finish what he started?" Tony stared at Gibbs when the man suddenly froze.

"That's it, Kehoe wants to finish what he started." Nodding to himself, Gibbs started back towards the remaining Jeep.

"Boss?"

"He's going back to finish what he started. He's taking McGee back to that damn bunker. Are you coming or not?" Gibbs turned to Vance as Tony and Ziva scrambled to get back to the Jeep with him. "We'll call for an ambulance for you and Fornell."

"Hell, no, I'm going with you."

Fornell had the same idea as he was only a few steps behind Ziva. One handed, he needed a boost to climb into the Jeep, but Tony didn't take the time to comment. Instead, he grabbed the first aid kit before taking the middle of the back seat between the two injured men. Ziva was in the front passenger seat with the map already out before Gibbs had the Jeep fired back up.

"Gibbs, if we stay on the roads, it will take us almost an hour to get to Kehoe's home." Tony looked up in alarm at her words as he bandaged the cut on Vance's forehead.

"We don't know how much of a head start he has on us, Boss."

Ignoring the road, Gibbs started across the desert. "That's why we have the Jeep, DiNozzo."

---NCIS---

Wedged against the floorboard of the old truck, Tim felt every bump and jar as they bounced along. He wasn't able to see out any window, but the rough ride told him they weren't on any road. Rather than watch Kehoe, Tim kept his head down and let the man think he was still unconscious. His legs tingled as the feeling returned, but he still felt weak. He wouldn't last long in a struggle, certainly not out in the middle of nowhere, so he waited for the right moment.

"We're home, baby boy." The sing-song tone of Kehoe's voice told him he'd run out of time as the truck stopped. His hair was grabbed and his head forced back, giving him no choice but to look Kehoe in the eye. His hair was released and the stained fingers wrapped around his throat in a move to render a victim unconscious. Gibbs had shown the move to he and Tony once, but Tim was still amazed at how quickly he could feel himself going under. His last thought was that those arthritic hands were a lot stronger than they looked.

---NCIS---

Tony couldn't stand the silence and had to start asking questions. "The chloroform should have worn off by now, right? I mean, McGee will be able to fight him."

Ziva looked at Fornell before she spoke. They had both seen the glass and metal object left behind in the car Mink had used. "The chloroform, yes, but there was a syringe on the floor of Mink's car."

"What, you're sure?" Tony faltered for a moment as he placed a splint on Fornell's arm.

"The car door had been left open, it was on the floorboard of the back seat."

Gibbs didn't say anything, but their speed increased again as they flew through the night.

---NCIS---

If McGee had been conscious, he would have felt the pain from being dropped down the trapdoor into the bunker, but by the time he was awake, he'd been manhandled onto his previously assigned bunk, his rope tied to the top of the frame.

Kehoe was straddling him, watching as awareness returned to his victim and leaned close to lick the side of his face. He laughed as Tim struggled, too confident in his control to notice that Tim used the struggle to pull his body closer to where the rope was tied, giving him more slack.

As the vile mouth moved down to bite at his jaw and then his throat, Tim struggled weakly, biding his time as Kehoe became more excited by his cries. He waited as the hands roughly explored his body. It wasn't until Kehoe pulled back to undo his belt that Tim made his move. Using the distance to his advantage, Tim managed to whip the rope around Kehoe's neck before the man realized what he was doing.

Kehoe roared as he grabbed at the rope, but Tim kicked out and rolled them both off the cot, tightening the rope around his throat. Kehoe fought like a man possessed, unable to pull the rope away from his neck, he slammed Tim repeatedly against the wall.

Tim determinedly hung on with every scrap of his strength. He was tight against Kehoe's back, the rope that was his weapon was also his prison as it kept them tangled together. The first time Kehoe reared back and crushed Tim between himself and the wall, Tim let out a cry. The second time he did it, Tim didn't have enough oxygen left in his lungs to make a sound. The third time, his vision started to fade out. It was like riding one of those mechanical bulls he'd seen in a few western bars. He just hoped he could hang on long enough, because this was turning into much more than an eight second ride.


	21. Chapter 21

**a/n - One more chapter after this one, then this story will be done. It's been a wild ride, thanks for sticking with me. The next two stories to be posted will be _My Father's Keeper _and _Puppet Master_. I'll warn you now, they both are dramatic, angsty stories. Stock up on tissues. Yes, I do have some lighter stories I'm working on, but deadlines come first. Enjoy.**

The nagging question of if Gibbs was right was answered when they could see an old Chevy truck parked outside Kehoe's cabin and hear the sound of a generator running. Not knowing if McGee and his assailant were up in the main house or down in the hidden room, Gibbs cut the engine and let the Jeep coast as far as it could. Once they were almost to a stop, Gibbs and Ziva jumped out. Climbing over his Director delayed DiNozzo, but only by a few seconds. The two injured members of the task force were not going to be left behind, but they managed on their own as to not slow the rescue.

DiNozzo and David took the back door, kicking it in as soon as they heard Gibbs' yell at the front. The two doors hitting the walls at the same time reverberated through the house, but no reaction was heard. Gibbs went straight to the bedroom Tim had pointed out earlier, gun drawn, but it was empty and unused.

With Vance and Fornell taking up defensive positions behind them, the others converged on the closed trapdoor. At the count of three, Tony yanked the door open while Gibbs and Ziva leaned in, weapons first.

Faint sounds of a struggle could be heard, and Gibbs tore down the ladder, gun still at the ready. Ziva was on his heels, and Tony was only seconds behind her.

"Tim!"

Gibbs holstered his weapon as he rushed in. The two combatants were tangled together in a corner, the rope making it impossible to separate. "Easy, kid, it's over." He shoved Kehoe's hand away from McGee's face, but he couldn't gain any distance between them. "Ziva, get these cuffs off him." Before she could get close enough to do anything, Kehoe managed to elbow Gibbs hard before grabbing McGee around the throat. He used the momentum of both of both of them to rear back, slamming his head into Gibbs' face.

Ziva went down when Gibbs was knocked backwards. Tony tried to sidestep both of them as he moved to take out Kehoe, but there was no place to go. Shooting him in such close quarters would almost certainly mean a through and through, something he couldn't risk with McGee wedged in behind him. As Tony looked for an opening, Vance and Fornell stumbled down the ladder to join them.

The new arrivals distracted Kehoe for a split second, but that was all Tim needed. In a move born of both training and desperation, Tim used his hip to roll Kehoe up and over the cot Tim was tied to. He dropped to the floor as soon as Kehoe was airborne. The rope was still around Kehoe's neck, and while it nearly pulled Tim's shoulders out of their sockets, the effect was much more devastating to Kehoe as his body weight was hung by his neck.

Neither Gibbs nor Ziva bothered to get to their feet as they both scrambled to finally reach McGee. Gibbs wrapped his arms around Tim's shoulders, helping to take the pressure off them as Ziva finally got the handcuffs off of him.

Tim was gasping and shaking as he was finally freed from Kehoe and as soon as Gibbs pulled him close, he buried his face in the older man's jacket. Ziva reached to comfort him as well, but Tony pulled her back with one hand and held his other hand up to stop Vance and Fornell.

"Tony, let me..."

"DiNozzo..."

"Agent DiNozzo, he needs..."

"No." Tony's voice was loud in the crowded room and he saw Tim flinch, so he lowered his voice. "Nobody else touches McGee. Not now." He shook his head as he repeated what had been a private conversation, needing the rest of them to understand. "When he was a kid, the first time he was rescued from here," Tony paused and waved his arms around. "All he wanted for his dad to wrap his arms around him and tell him that it was going to be okay." He had a soft smile as he turned back to watch his surrogate kid brother and the man that was a father figure to them both. "That was all he wanted."

Vance was torn, but when he looked at the two men sitting on the floor, he knew DiNozzo was right. Gibbs had scooted back far enough to lean against the wall and had pulled Tim up onto his lap, the bowed head tucked under his chin as he softly talked to him. For his part, Tim seemed no longer aware of anything outside the circle of arms around him as his shoulders quietly shook.

Unsettled, and feeling like he was intruding, Vance moved to the other side of the cot to join Fornell as he watched Kehoe. The monster they all had come to loathe twitched one last time before his body stilled, the larynx crushed by the rope around his neck.

Fornell turned to him, his splinted arm still pressed tightly against his body. "Don't think I've ever enjoyed watching a final breath as much as that one before."

"Almost makes me want to give him CPR so I can watch it again." Vance's smile was grim enough that Fornell knew he wasn't joking.

The hidden room was soundproof, but the open trapdoor allowed them to hear their back-up arrive. As the most senior agent, Vance took it upon himself to greet them, rather than force Fornell to climb the ladder with his broken arm. He stood under the opening and yelled up to them.

"This is Director Vance with NCIS. The scene is secure, suspect is dead and we've got injuries." He stepped back as a portly man in a uniform came down the ladder followed by another half dozen deputies and several medics.

"Vance, I'm Sheriff Collins, it's nice to finally meet face to face. Is this the last scene? Because I don't mind telling you, between the body you folks left in the desert and the one at the old factory site and now here, my boys are stretched pretty thin." He walked over to peer down at Kehoe. "So which one of you fellows finally put this animal down? I'd like to shake his hand."

Tony and Ziva had set themselves up as guards to keep the arriving personnel away from Tim, but even the sound of the strange voice made his curl up even tighter against Gibbs. Tony caught Vance's attention and the Director immediately saw what the problem was. Kehoe's body was covered and all of the new arrivals except for the Sheriff and one medic retreated back upstairs.

The medic didn't move closer than Tony, but crouched down, trying to look harmless. Gibbs made eye contact with him for a moment before returning his attention to McGee. "Tim, we're going to get you checked out and then get you out of here whenever you're ready. What do you say to that?"

McGee didn't say anything, but he did shift enough to look up at Gibbs, finally with some awareness. Gibbs nodded as he, too, shifted to keep McGee comfortable in this new position.

"Agent McGee, since we don't know exactly how badly you've been injured, we're going to strap you down on a backboard to get you up above ground." The medic stood and prepared to leave for the equipment.

"No, please, I don't want to be tied down."

"Easy, easy, nobody is going to do anything you're not comfortable with."

"That's right, Buddy." Tony elbowed past the medic as he agreed with Gibbs. "You tell us how you want to do this."

"I want to walk out, but..." He looked down at his half naked body and blushed, pulling his knees further up against his chest.

"Easy fix, Probie." Tony turned to Ziva who was standing in back of him. He didn't even have to say anything. She nodded and rushed up the ladder to retrieve his clothes that they had found earlier.

Fornell and Vance were busy explaining to the Sheriff everything that had occurred that evening, filling in the large gaps from their earlier calls for assistance. Vance insisted that nothing be done with the body or any part of the crime scene until McGee was out of the basement and on his way to the hospital.

Vance found that his attention kept wandering back to the scene in the corner. Tim was quietly leaning back against Gibbs, still drawing strength from the older man. DiNozzo was closer now that Tim was communicating with them, but still not so close as to crowd him, sitting on the ground telling him some sort of story. Vance couldn't hear the soft words, but Tim was smiling slightly and nodding back.

In the back of the Jeep, Ziva quickly found the clothing they had stumbled onto near Doyle's body, but they were covered with sand and now damp from the night air. One of the deputies who had been in the basement came over with a gym bag.

"Ma'am, there's some clean sweats in here. It might be more comfortable for your man right now than jeans." He unzipped the bag and partially pulled out a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt to show her.

She took the offered bag. "Thank you, this will be easier for him." Bag in hand, all she took from the Jeep were McGee's shoes. After a brief conference with the medic waiting outside to let him know what McGee needed, she returned to climb down into the underground bunker.

"Tony, here." She handed him the sweatpants first and he grinned back at her before he turned to the pair on the floor.

With a minimum of speaking, Gibbs and Tony dressed Tim as if he were a child. Tony guided his feet into the pant legs as Gibbs lifted him up, and then as Gibbs continued to support Tim, Tony carefully brushed off as much of the grit from Tim's socks and straightened them before helping him into the shoes. As Tony tied Tim's shoes, he realized that the young man's shoulders and arms probably were in no condition right now to tug on a t-shirt, so he slipped his jacket off and put it on Tim.

Once dressed, Tim leaned back again against Gibbs, exhausted. It seemed a lifetime ago that he was having his check up, but it really had only been that afternoon. He wondered if they would be taking him to the same hospital and if the doctors there would yell at him for not taking it easy like ordered.

"Tim?" Gibbs lightly tapped him on the back of the head, forcing him to open his eyes. "If you're going to get up that ladder, then you need to stay awake for a few more minutes, okay?"

"Uh uh." Tim tried to get his feet under him and they lifted him as they stood. Once he was upright, with Tony on one side and Gibbs on the other, Tim started to the ladder. Part way there, he turned to look back at the sheet covered body. "I killed him, didn't I? I killed him with my bare hands."

"He gave you no choice, McGee, it was either him or you."

"The Boss is right, Probie, and we're all really glad it was you that made it out alive." Tony looked over at Gibbs, wondering how they were all going to fit through the trapdoor.

Gibbs knew what he was thinking, and turned to McGee. "Tony is going to go up the ladder first. So he'll be up there waiting for you. I"m going to support you on the ladder, and then I'll be right behind you. Now, are you ready?"

When Tim nodded, Tony scrambled up the ladder, ready for him. It took Tim much longer, but with Gibbs help, he made it to the top of the ladder. As promised, Tony was waiting for him, lifting him the rest of the way before wrapping him up in a hug that would have made Abby happy. "Grandpa would have been proud of you, Tim."

"Thanks, Tony... for everything."

Gibbs never broke contact as he came up just a step behind, ready when Tony transferred Tim back to him.

As per Ziva's instructions, the stretchers had been locked down and the attendants stepped back out of the way as Gibbs climbed in with Tim. Tony helped Tim balance from the other side until he was up the steps and sitting on the edge of one of the stretchers, then he turned to help Vance.

Vance gave him a long look before nodding. "The four of you work well together, DiNozzo. I was glad to see that."

"Does that mean you won't break us up again?"

"It was never a punishment and it was never meant to be permanent, but at the time it was necessary. Now, you and David officially hand over the crime scene to the locals and meet us at the hospital."

Tony grinned as he gave Vance a boost up. "With Ziva driving, we'll probably beat you there." He watched as the medic from the basement helped Fornell into the front seat of the ambulance, then pulled out his phone to follow the last instruction Gibbs had given him as they'd gotten Tim up out of the basement.

It only rang once on the other end before excited chatter could be heard. "He's safe, Abby. It's over."


	22. Chapter 22

**a/n - Okay, this got to be too big, so I divided it. That means one more chapter after this. I figured you guys wouldn't mind.**

Thanks to Ziva's last orders to the medics, no siren was used as the ambulance traveled to the nearest hospital. Vance was grateful for the silence, as McGee still flinched at every sound. In deference to the nasty scrapes and bruises on him back, Gibbs arms were loosely wrapped around Tim as he kept the young man's head tucked under his chin still, the murmurings of safety and pride barely audible from his side of the ambulance.

Vance laughed to himself when the Jeep driven by Ziva had to wait while the ambulance backed in to it's spot at the emergency entrance at the hospital. With Gibbs supporting McGee, and Tony and Ziva escorting Vance and Fornell, they made quite an entrance into the hospital. Tony and Ziva were stopped in the waiting room, while the rest were swept back to the examining rooms. The last Vance saw of the rest of them was Fornell pointing at him and spilling the beans to one of the doctors. "Don't let him con you. He was unconscious for at least ten minutes."

"Tattle-tale. You mean ten minutes longer than you."

Gibbs smiled in amusement at the two bickering men as the door to McGee's exam room closed, surrounding them in silence. Tim had become almost non-vocal and he was starting to worry. With a nurse on the other side, he helped McGee up onto the exam table and slid Tony's jacket off of him. The nurse hissed as she got a look at his back and Gibbs straightened to see the damage better. When she pulled down one of the bright overhead lights he could see the debris imbedded in the scrapes in addition to the darkening bruises. He'd wondered why Kehoe used such a long rope to tie Tim down, now it made sense. It had been used like a leash to drag the young man around while he'd been drugged and defenseless. It also explained why the back of his boxers were in shreds. Between the two of them, they got him laying on his side and covered with a sheet before a second nurse came in with a rape kit. Tim immediately flinched when he saw it.

"Tim, you know how it works. Even though they're dead, we need to gather any evidence of what they did to you." Gibbs carefully watched his reaction, not knowing how far Kehoe's abuse went before they arrived, let alone Mink or Doyle's.

"No, please. He groped me and licked the side of my face, but that's as far as he got."

It was a quiet refusal and Gibbs knew the young man was reaching the end of his endurance. "Okay, but you need to tell me what each of them did to you, can you do that? Then we'll decided what has to be done and what doesn't." A slight nod as he closed his eyes was all the agreement Gibbs received, but it would have to do. "Tell me about Doyle. We found his body in the desert near your clothes."

"He... he was the one that grabbed me." Tim opened his eyes and shivered. The nurse added a thin blanket to the bed as a doctor quietly came in. "It happened so fast. I looked up and he was reaching through the window with a rag. I took a deep breath to yell and got a lung full of whatever was on it. I barely remember hitting the floor.

Gibbs just nodded as he waited, letting Tim set the pace. "I heard the shot when Mink killed Doyle, I couldn't move, but I heard Doyle. He sounded so surprised when he asked Mink what he was doing. Then Mink came to the back seat and started taking my... taking my clothes off. I begged him to stop, but I was still to drugged to fight back." Remembering, Tim tried to sit up, but Gibbs' hand on his upper arm kept him in place. "Mink thought seeing me like that would distract Kehoe. He was going to shoot him as soon as he had the book. He handcuffed me, and then drugged me again."

"We saw the syringe in the car. Do you know what he used?"

"No, it put me out pretty quick. Took me awhile to be able to move after I woke up. I saw Kehoe, and Mink was..."

"Mink was what, Tim?" Gibbs crouched down to look closer at McGee.

Tim shuddered and wouldn't look Gibbs in the eye. "He pointed his gun at my face, told Kehoe that he'd get a corpse to play with if he didn't hand over the book. I'm not sure what happened, I just remember looking down the barrel of that gun and not being able to move." He paused and took a shaky breath. "Kehoe called his bluff, I guess, because Mink walked away from me, and then he was laying next to me with a knife sticking out of him."

"That must have been rough."

"He had me over his shoulder and I still couldn't move. I heard the shot, and saw the Jeep crash. I thought it was you guys." Tim finally looked at Gibbs. "I thought you were all dead, I thought you all died because of me."

Things were falling into place. "You thought you had nothing left to lose."

"I knew I was going to die tied to that wall, it was just a matter of taking him with me. I didn't want him to hurt anyone else." The tears started coming as he stared at his hands. "I killed him, Boss. I killed him."

"You had no choice." Gibbs picked up a sterile swab and took a sample of the dried saliva he could see on the side of Tim's face. "I know it's hard to see right now, but it'll get easier. Now, the doctor's going to get you taken care of and then we'll get out of here."

---NCIS---

It was mid-morning before the six remaining members of the task force left the hospital. The Marine Base Commander had sent a team out to retrieve both the intact Jeep and the damaged one and had two of the sedans repaired and delivered to the hospital. Ziva supervised the moving of the equipment and managed to acquire a large box from the hospital. Just as she was finishing, the three injured men were wheeled out of the emergency department.

As he helped McGee and Vance into one car, Ziva came up to Gibbs. "Tony and I have a stop to make. Do you wish to meet back at the motel, or would you rather follow us?"

"What are you up to, Ziva?" He had McGee settled in the front seat, and now Gibbs was helping Vance into the back seat.

She actually seemed embarrassed, which caught his interest as he closed the back door. "It is something that will help McGee, I believe."

"Then, we'll follow you." Gibbs watched as she returned to the other car as DiNozzo closed the door after Fornell had climbed into the back seat.

Vance didn't have the energy to figure out what time it was in Greece as he dialed. Whatever the time, the call was needed on both continents. "Jason, it's Leon, I've got someone here who'd like to speak to you."

Tim barely opened his eyes as he took the phone. "Hey, Dad, it's over. We stopped the guy and no more kids were kidnapped.... Mink's dead, he won't bother me anymore... Kehoe's dead, too... Yeah, it's really over... I'm okay, just a little banged up and really tired... Okay, Dad, love you too. Kiss Mom for me."

---NCIS---

In the daylight and without the urgency, the detour out to the desert didn't seem that long, but it did make Tobias Fornell curious. He listened to Ziva's explanation. "This is where we found Doyle's body and McGee's clothes."

"Okaaay..." Now that he'd heard it, it still didn't make any sense to him.

Ziva climbed out of the driver's seat and got the box out of the trunk. Tony immediately knew what she was doing as he scrambled out his side.. "Oh, come one, Ziva, you can't be serious." She turned and looked at him, with only the briefest of glances at the car that pulled in behind them.

"McGee will struggle with the knowledge that he killed Kehoe."

Tony wasn't convinced, while Fornell rolled down his window to listen. "Probie has killed before. It's part of the job, Ziva, you know that."

"Shot and killed a suspect, yes, but killing an attacker in hand to hand combat is different. It is something McGee has not been trained to deal with He's not an assassin, Tony, and I do not want him to start questioning his humanity." Ziva started walking out to the den, forcing Tony to follow her to continue the conversation.

"What, you think rescuing a bunch of puppies will help him?"

Ziva started coaxing the mother dog out of her den. "I've seen him with Jethro. Besides, do you want to be the one to tell him that we found these puppies and then just left them here?"

Tony began to answer, but then closed his mouth and started retrieving puppies, placing them in the box with their mother.

In the other car, Gibbs recognized what Ziva was up to the second she headed out with the box. Vance didn't understand until he saw DiNozzo stand up with two wiggling pups. Whispering, as to not wake McGee, he glared at Gibbs. "Exactly what do they propose we do with them?"

Gibbs just grinned at him. "My team always has a plan, Leon."


	23. Chapter 23

**a/n - Thank you, everyone, for all your wonderful comments and reviews. I do treasure each and every one of them. This is it, the final chapter of this story. I'll be back in a day or two with the first chapter of _My Father's Keeper_. When Gibbs goes too far protecting Tony after the events in Flesh and Blood, who will pay the ultimate price? I'm currently working on chapter three of that one and chapter two of _Puppet Master_, so there's lots more stories coming up.**

The sound of yipping woke McGee when the box was set on the back seat. Blinking, he turned his head to better see what was making the noise. "Puppies?"

Gibbs grinned at the expression on his young agent's face and leaned over his seat to grab the most active of the pups, depositing the wiggling animal in Tim's arms. Even Fornell joined the rest of the group as the sound of Tim's soft laughter relaxed them all.

"When we get back to the motel, you'll have to tell us how you found these guys." By now, Fornell had one hand in the box, letting one of the puppies chew on his fingers. "I've been promising Emily a dog, and her birthday is in a few weeks..."

Tony leaned over and loudly whispered in Ziva's ear, much to everyone's amusement. "One down."

Vance had been absently scratching the mother dog's ears. Now he picked up one of the puppies and held it up in front of his face. The tri-colored dog had long fur and floppy ears. "It should be pretty easy to find homes for these guys." The pup started licking his nose.

"Two down."

Gibbs knew he had to get the group moving again. "Let's hit the road, people." To emphasis his point, he fired up the car.

Fornell reluctantly pulled back from the puppies chewing on his coat sleeve. "We'd better stop and pick up supplies for these little guys and their mom. We'll see you back at the motel." He gave one last look at the occupants of the car, both two legged and four legged, before returning to the other sedan. Ziva was right behind him, but it took Tony a few more moments to turn away from Tim and the small dog now snuggled up against his neck, dozing.

---NCIS---

It was difficult, but Tony kept a straight face as he watched Fornell check out every squeeky toy at the store. In the end, Fornell bought one of each, and three different kinds of food for the mother dog in addition to puppy food.

"I don't know a lot about dogs, but are they old enough to eat this stuff yet?" Tony hefted the bag of puppy food up as he was loading the trunk.

"If they're not yet, they will be pretty soon, DiNozzo."

"Well, yeah," Tony looked back and forth between Fornell and Ziva. "But what happens when it's time for us to go back to DC?"

Ziva steadied Fornell as he climbed back into the car. "The SecNav's private jet is still here in California for us, Tony."

Tony immediately decided that the best part of having the Director tag along on this adventure was the fact that it would be Vance explaining the small, furry passengers to the SecNav and not him.

---NCIS---

Being the only uninjured one in their car meant that Gibbs had the job of carrying the box to the room while McGee and Vance leaned against each other. He quickly realized that he shouldn't have been in such a rush to get them moving earlier as the pups tumbled around in the box, playing, and almost tipping it out of his arms. He made a note to himself to let the dogs play themselves to exhaustion first before attempting to lug the box anywhere by himself.

He was almost into the room when one of the motel maids leaned over the railing from the upstairs units. "If you're going to bring dogs into the motel, you'd better make sure there's a pet deposit on record before the manager catches you."

"Great." Gibbs set the box down on the floor as he kicked the door closed. Vance looked up after he eased McGee onto the bed.

"I'll go take care of it. I'm sure Tim would be more comfortable with you helping him get changed."

After Vance left, Gibbs patted the mother dog's head as she whined. "Easy girl, let's take care of Tim first, okay?" She settled down, resting her muzzle on her paws as she watched him move to the suitcase at the foot of the bed and retrieve a clean pair of boxers. With only a canine witness, Gibbs gently helped Tim strip down and pull on the boxers before holding up the blankets to allow him to exhaustedly crawl into the bed.

Once Tim was settled, Gibbs filled the paper ice bucket with water for the dogs and sat on the floor to give them a quick once over.

---NCIS---

Vance glared at the manager as the portly man sputtered in protest. "You brought a feral dog and her mongrel pups into my motel? What will the other guests think? It's bad enough to have an entire squadron of federal agents, but now you've got dogs with you."

"Look on the bright side, at least we haven't shot anybody yet." Vance slammed his credit card on the counter. "Just put the deposit on my card."

The other sedan was pulling in when Vance finally walked out of the motel office and he detoured to see what they had bought. He did raise an eyebrow at the sixty pounds of dog food, but covered by picking up the bag with the collars and leashes. Tony had two bags of food balanced on each shoulder, which just left the toys and bowls for Ziva as Fornell slowly climbed out of the car with the dog bed. Vance surveyed the multitudes of bags and decided he'd gotten the better end of the deal. Now, all he had to do was call Jackie and break the news that they were about to become foster parents. After he'd deposited the bags in the room he headed out to Gibbs' rock to start making phone calls.

It was nearly dusk when Vance returned to the rooms. At some point McGee had apparently awakened, because he was wearing clean sweats and was laying on the floor with the pups. Ziva and Tony had joined him and now the three supposedly seasoned agents were all asleep on the floor, Tim in the middle, looking like exhausted but happy children. Tony and Ziva were on their sides, both facing Tim, each with an arm over him. Draped over the three of them were four of the five pups, all sleeping. The fifth pup was still awake, chewing on Tony's shoelaces. Fornell was in the adjoining room, on the phone, while Gibbs was sitting, watching over his agents, with the mother dog curled up at his feet.

"Don't take my team again, Leon. Whatever the problems are, we tackle them together."

Vance took a deep breath, preparing to explain, again, his reasoning behind the temporary separation that had apparently affected them so much, but then he looked at Gibbs and realized that he was not being asked by a team leader, but by a father.

"Understood, Gibbs."

---NCIS---

Tony cracked an eye open when he heard the soft groan as McGee climbed off the other bed. Half awake, he tracked the other man's progress into the bathroom before settling back down. Just as he was about to go back to sleep, Tony heard the shower kick on. This time he opened both eyes and raised his head up to look around. It had been a day and a half since they had returned to the motel and Tim was much more steady on his feet, but Tony couldn't imagine a reason he'd be taking a shower at 0700. The black suit he'd taken in to the bathroom with him sent an alarm off in Tony's mind and he was on his feet before his brain even registered that he was moving.

When McGee came out, straightening his tie, only fifteen minutes later, Tony was casually sitting at the table, sipping at a warm soda. "Dressed kinda formal for a day playing with the dogs, Probie."

Tim didn't look directly at him as he pocketed his wallet and phone. "Mink's funeral is this morning. I asked Fornell if I could ride with him."

Behind Tim, Tony looked over his shoulder to Gibbs and Vance who were standing in the door from the other room. "Why would you want to go to that man's funeral? He kidnapped you, Tim. He kidnapped you and handed you over to that monster." Behind the other two men, Tony could hear some noise as Ziva arrived in the other room with breakfast.

"I know what he did, Tony." Tim winced as he pulled his jacket on. "I have the scars to prove what he did."

"Then why?"

"I can hate what he did to me and still pity him for why he did it."

Gibbs stepped through the doorway before Tony could think what to say. "He doesn't deserve your pity, Tim. You don't have to prove anything by going."

"He lost his only child, Gibbs." Tim hesitated before continuing. "Think about it, Boss."

"No." In truth, it had been niggling at him ever since he'd head about Mink's missing son.

McGee wasn't ready to back down. "I know what it did to my parents when I was missing, and I was only gone for two years. What if it had been Kelly, Boss? You had the closure of knowing what happened to her, of being able to bury her body. What if you hadn't? What if you'd spent more than twenty-five years not knowing if she was dead or alive? Every night, wondering if she was cold, if she was hungry, wondering what kind of monster was keeping her prisoner, what he was doing to her? How far would you have gone to get the answers?"

"Damn it." Gibbs let his chin drop onto his chest for a moment before turning to the closet and throwing his suit onto the bed. He had his t-shirt half way off before he looked over at Ziva, still standing there with a bag of pastries. "It's not a peepshow, David."

Ziva set the bag down on the table. Through the door she could see Tony pulling his suit out of the closet. "Of course not, Gibbs. I will go back to my room and change as well. Mink was part of this task force and was killed in the line of duty. We should attend."

---NCIS---

Epilogue

It had been a month since the six surviving members of the task force had attended Mink's funeral and Gibbs refused to admit how much the somber affair had affected him. Other than the five members of NCIS and Fornell, only Mink's elderly mother had been in attendance. She had readily admitted that her son's obsession with the disappearance of his child and the possible link to Kehoe had driven away everyone else in his life.

Tim's questions still rattled around in his mind. Most of the time he was able to ignore them, but at night, with the honesty that came with too much bourbon and too little sleep, he had to wonder how far down that path he could have gone if things had been different.

Today, however, was a day to celebrate. McGee had returned from a visit with his family and had finally been cleared to return to the field. Fornell's teams had successfully raided the last of the pedophiles listed in Kehoe's book. Across the country, several families were being reunited while many more would soon find closure.

Celebratory drinks were on Vance tonight and Gibbs planned on teasing him about the background checks he'd run on each of the pup's adoptive families, but first he had to nudge the one agent that wasn't already headed for the elevator.

McGee was still sitting at his desk. He knew his friends were waiting for him, but he had this one last thing to do before he left. He'd already pulled up the last photo taken of Larry Mink's son before he vanished, and now he was downloading the photo he'd just located of the boy's mother. Once that was added to the program along with the FBI's photo of Mink, he'd be able to update the missing person's report with a current estimate of how the boy would look today. Gibbs came up behind him and rested a hand on his shoulder as the two of them looked at the image as it resolved on the monitor.

"No new leads on him?"

"Not yet. They're still digging up bodies in both Texas and Pennsylvania and still sorting out the remains they found in Michigan." The image on the computer was complete and Tim electronically added it to the file and sent a copy to the missing children's division. He recognized the worried expression on Gibbs' face and tried to reassure him. "I'm not going to obsess about him, I just want to make sure the file is up to date. He deserves that much. They all do." File transfer complete, McGee shut down his computer as Gibbs waited for him.

"Yeah, they do." Gibbs handed him his coat as he stood "Come on, DiNozzo is expecting more stories about your grandfather tonight, and so am I."

Tim followed him to the elevator where Tony and Ziva were waiting for them. "Aren't you guys tired of hearing Grandpa's stories yet?"

Tony slung his arm around Tim as the metal doors opened. "Never, Probie. Where would our team have been without his stories?" Ziva joined in from the other side and the three stepped into the elevator together, Gibbs a step behind. From the balcony, Vance watched the interaction and smiled.


End file.
